


Safe and Sound

by Pangirl_Fangirl



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Badass Felicity and Thea, Bratva AU, Multi, Protective Oliver, bratva!Oliver, intense Oliver
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-20
Updated: 2016-07-17
Packaged: 2018-03-10 01:54:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 15
Words: 88,616
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3272465
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pangirl_Fangirl/pseuds/Pangirl_Fangirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bratva AU!   When some unpleasant circumstances cause Donna Smoak to send her daughter to live with a notorious Bratva Captain, her daughter is less than pleased. Felicity can't get a straight answer from anyone about why she was now living at the Queen Mansion and though it has its ups, like Thea Queen and Felicity's new bodyguard Roy Harper, there are definitely some downs. </p><p>Like almost being killed and the hot and cold Mr. Oliver Queen. </p><p>When Felicity realizes that she will be staying in the mansion for the foreseeable future, she decides to not only find the people trying to kill her but also try and figure out the mystery that is Bratva Captain Oliver Queen.</p><p>And she really hates mysteries.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. For the First Time in Forever

**Author's Note:**

> So....a Bratva story! I should probably give you guys some background stuff first.
> 
> First of all, in this story the Queen family has had ties to the Bratva for a long time and the reason Oliver is a Bratva Captain is because he saved Anatoly Knyazev (like in the show) but he took the title very seriously and took up all the responsibilities that came with it. He runs most of the American branch of the Bratva. Robert is dead (you'll find out how) so don't expect to see him, but Moira is still alive and kicking.
> 
> Felicity's father was a Bratva Captain that mostly lived in Russia but had his family live in Starling. He is Russian and Donna is American.
> 
> Same characters with an obvious Bratva twist. Total Olicity. Not a slow burn but things won't happen immediately (but I did try to shove some fluff into the cracks)
> 
> Tell me what you think and if something seems overly weird to you (Side Note that this is an AU so a lot of stuff is different)
> 
> Thanks for reading!  
> -Addie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Summaries are the song lyrics at the start.

** For the First Time in Forever  **

The window is open, so’s that door   
I didn’t know they did that anymore   
Who knew we owned a thousand salad plates?   
For years I’ve roamed these empty halls   
Why have a ballroom with no balls?   
Finally they’re opening up the gates   
  
There’ll be actual real live people   
It’ll be totally strange   
Wow, am I so ready for this change   
  
'Cuz for the first time in forever   
There’ll be music, there’ll be light   
For the first time in forever   
I’ll be dancing through the night   
  
Don’t know if I’m elated or gassy   
But I’m somewhere in the zone   
'Cuz for the first time in forever   
I won’t be alone   
  
I can’t wait to meet everyone! (gasp) What if I meet… the one?   
  
Tonight imagine me gown and all, fetchingly draped against the wall   
A picture of sophisticated grace   
I suddenly see him standing there, a beautiful stranger, tall and fair   
I wanna stuff some chocolate in my face   
  
But then we laugh and talk all evening,   
Which is totally bizarre   
Nothing like the life I’ve lead so far   
  
For the first time in forever   
There’ll be magic, there’ll be fun   
For the first time in forever   
I could be noticed by someone   
  
And I know it’s totally crazy   
To dream I’d find romance   
But for the first time in forever   
At least I’ve got a chance   
  
  
Don’t let them in, don’t let them see   
Be the good girl you always have to be   
Conceal, don’t feel, put on a show   
Make one wrong move and everyone will know   
  
But it’s only for today (It’s only for today)   
This agony awaits (This agony awaits)   
Tell the guards to open up the gates (The gates)   
  
  
For the first time in forever (Don’t let them in, don’t let them see)   
I’m getting what I’m dreaming of (Be the good girl you always have to be)   
A chance to change my lonely world (Conceal)   
A chance to find true love (Conceal, don’t feel, don’t let them know)   
  
  
I know it all ends tomorrow,   
So it has to be today   
'Cuz for the first time in forever   
For the first time in forever   
Nothing’s in my way! 

 

Thea was excited. She actually believed that she was so excited that she might explode. Thea had spent her whole life living with people watching her, never really allowed to have any friends because her family didn't trust anyone outside the Bratva and she was finally, _finally_ , going to have a friend. Well, she hoped that the new girl coming to live with them would become her friend. Thea was talking all of this over with Raisa as she was making preparations for dinner.

"I can't wait to meet her! I wonder what she's like, and if she'll like me. Do you think she'll like me Raisa?" The older woman didn't even bother to open her mouth knowing the youngest Queen wasn't going to give her time to answer. "That would suck if she didn't like me. However I am the only other girl in the house so she'll have to try her best to like me. Tommy told me that she probably doesn't want to be here to in the first place and that she's being forced the live here. But don't worry Raisa, I'm sure that you and I will make her feel very welcome." Thea smiled as she looked at all the food that Raisa was preparing. Since they were getting a new guest, several other members of the Bratva were coming to eat dinner.

"I love having people over, even though they barely ever talk to me. I just like the atmosphere, you know? I feel safe when I'm surrounded by people and I'm sure the new girl will like the meet everyone at once. Of course, she'll see them at the end of the week when we hold that party for her. We can finally get some use out of our ballroom. I mean, what's the point in having a ballroom if we don't ever use it? I don't understand why I can't use it every once and awhile. The last time Ollie caught me in there, he threw me out and locked the door! What's his problem about the ballroom anyway?" Raisa saw that Thea was honestly asking her opinion.

"I believe that Mr. Oliver knows what is best for you, even when you do not." Thea sighed and rolled her eyes.

"That sounds like a tape recording of Ollie.  _I know what's best for you, I'm your older brother, what I say goes._ " Thea mimicked in a deep voice. Raisa shook her head and waved a dish towel at Thea.

"Go on Miss. Thea, our newcomer will be here soon and you do not want to miss her arrival." Thea checked her watch and leapt off the barstool.

"She'll be here any minute! Thanks Raisa!" Thea ran out of the kitchen and up the back staircase which lead her to the small secluded hallways that held Raisa and Carson rooms. She exited the hallway and into a bigger one the branched off into the rest of the house. She passed by a window and saw some of her brothers men setting things up and getting ready for the new girls arrival. The lawn was almost done being mowed and several potted plants were being placed along the perimeter of the roundabout. Thea stared out the window till she saw who she wanted to see.

Roy Harper, Bratva Bodyguard.

He was lower in the ranks in terms of bodyguards at the Queen Mansion but because he was living in a Captains house, he was given a lot of respect. He was going to be the bodyguard of the new girl and this was going to be his first job at the mansion. Thea had already taken a liking to him and she would admit, from what she's seen from him, a bit of a crush. He was handsome and very loyal to her brother. It was the reason he was transferred up to the house. Roy was moved from house to house because his work was so impeccable that higher ranking members wanted him to work for them. Oliver snatched him up as soon as he had an opening and now Roy was a permanent fixture in her household.

At that moment Roy looked up to see Thea watching him from the window. She smiled and raised her hand as a sort of wave. She saw the corners of his mouth tug upwards and Thea took that as a win. Roy tried to never smile when he was in work mode and she liked that she was able to break his resolve, even the slightest bit. The men all began to move back into the house. Thea stared out the window a little longer until something moved in the corner of her vision. She dragged her eyes up to see a black car driving through the front gates.

"She's here!" Thea yelled, jumping up excitedly. She turned on her heel and sped towards the direction of the front door, ecstatic about meeting her new friend.

 

Felicity was sad. She was so sad, she might even say that she was depressed. Not even forty-eight hours after the death of her father, Felicity was in a car and being shipped off to live with strangers. Her mother sat beside her in the car, both looking almost identical, in black dresses with their blonde hair settled on their shoulders. Felicity refused to look at her mother, even though it wasn't her fault that Felicity was moving. She just really wished her mother would stop lying to her. She insisted that Felicity would only stay at the Queen Mansion for one or two days, then everything would be back to normal. Felicity didn't know the reason she was being sent away but she sure as hell knew it had nothing to do with preparations for her fathers funeral. She knew that was a complete lie because in what world did the preparation of a funeral constitute moving your daughter a few miles out of town? Absolutely none.

The car pulled through the gates of the Queen Mansion and Felicity was almost taken away with the view. Almost. It was larger than her home, however Felicity had been in the home of Anatoly Knyazev and he had the largest house of all, not that size mattered to Felicity, she preferred the outdoors. The car made the slow trek up the gravel driveway, the clear sky a contrast to Felicity's current mood. When the car came to a stop, the driver exited and rounded the car, opening the door for Felicity. She climbed out and craned her neck upward to look at the massively old building. Donna Smoak came to stand beside her daughter, both standing silently for a moment while the driver collected Felicity's things.

"Don't let them in дорогой. You can't let them into your heart. I know you come to trust people too easily and that can be dangerous Felicity."

"I thought I wasn't staying here long. If I'm only here a day or so, I doubt that I'll come to trust them that quickly. However, why shouldn't I trust them? Bratva before blood, remember?" Felicity said coldly. Donna sighed.

"You need to be a good girl and do as they tell you. They can't know how fragile you really are. You make one wrong move and everyone will know."

"Don't trust them, do as they say, don't let them know you have severe mental problems," Felicity nodded. "Got it."

"This is serious Felicity,"

"Is it mother? I thought I was just sleeping over while you got fathers funeral planned out?" Felicity raised a challenging eyebrow at her mother, trying to see if her mother would crack under pressure and tell Felicity why she was really staying with the Queen family.

"You are," Her mother said with a tight smile. "Just a day or so."

"I'll see you then, goodbye mother." Donna looked hesitant but finally leaned forward and place a kiss to the top of Felicity's head.

"Goodbye дорогой. Оставайтесь в безопасности." She mumbled into her hair. Felicity's mother got back into the car and Felicity watched as if drove away and out the gates. Felicity stood a few meters away from the front doors of the Queen Mansion with her leather suitcase at her feet.

She picked it up and was about to step towards the door when something caught her eye. Felicity turned to the right and saw a rabbit hopping by the hedge beside the house. Felicity smiled at the furry creature as it made it's way up the driveway and through an opening in the hedges, that Felicity assumed lead you to the backyard. She was immediately mesmerized by the little critter and decided to follow it. Felicity set her suitcase on the ground set off through the opening. She was so distracted that she didn't hear a man call out her name.

 

Roy had exited the mansion and was going to greet Felicity but found her nowhere in sight.

"Miss. Smoak?" He called out. He stepped fully into the driveway and looked around until he saw a glimpse of her enter the entrance to the backyard. Roy picked up her discarded suitcase as he passed by it and followed her, doing his job. "Miss. Smoak?" Roy called out again but realized she was too far away to hear him.

 

Felicity continued to follow the rabbit into a large open piece of land. She had to walk a little further until she was no longer walking beside the house and stopped at the end of a gradually descending hill. The lawn began to lower from where she stood and the hill ended near a body of water. There were several pool houses and gazebos but Felicity couldn't care less. She couldn't remember the last time she saw an expanse of water that was larger than a puddle, being stowed away in her house most of her life. She wrapped her arms around herself as the breeze from the water picked up, sending goosebumps over Felicity's bare legs and lace covered arms. Her black dress stayed pin straight, the material hugging her curves and not giving any room to move. It stopped just before her knees and a little after her elbows, showing off a sad image of black lace on top of black fabric. She curled her toes in her black ballet flats as the cold hit her feet. Felicity tilted her head to set her cheek on her shoulder before glancing behind her to look at the back of the house. There was a lot of windows and the largest one on the top floor that started at the floor of the room and almost reached the roof, Felicity could see into.

And what Felicity saw was someone watching her. She was close enough to the house that she could make out features of the man, the broad shoulders, crisp grey suit, short hair, glass of alcohol in his hand and the most noticeable, his stoney expression.

_Mr. Queen_ . She thought. _His reputation proceeds him_. He raised his glass to his mouth and took a sip. He never blinked, or shifted his gaze from her. Felicity stared blankly back at him before returning her gaze to the water in front of her.

"Miss. Smoak?" Someone behind her said. She turned to met a tall young man with brown hair and a very square jaw.

"Hello," Felicity said softly. "I'm so sorry for wondering about. I just love the outdoors." The man shook his head.

"That's alright. I'm Roy Harper, Miss. Smoak, I'll be your bodyguard while you stay at the Queen Mansion." He stuck out the hand that wasn't holding her suitcase.

"Felicity Smoak." She said shaking it. "Although you probably already knew that, it's your job. It's nice to meet you Mr. Harper."

"Call me Roy."

"Okay, then call me Felicity." Roy shook his head again.

"I'll be calling you Miss. Smoak if it's all the same to you. Captains orders." Felicity's eyes flicked up to the window where she was still being watched.

"Formal addressment, right. I guess you always do what Mr. Queen says?"

"Those are the rules." They stood silently for a moment before Roy spoke again. "Would you like to come inside? You look cold."

"I'm fine, but yes, I would like to go inside, thank you." The two made their way back to the front of the house. The house was quite warm compared to outside and Felicity's glasses fogged up slightly. Four people were waiting in the front foyer, two men and two women. The young woman to Felicity's right was bouncing with excitement.

"Hi!" She took an enthusiastic step foward and extended a hand. "I'm Thea Queen, it's so nice to finally meet you!" Felicity gave Thea a small smile.

"It nice to meet you too." Felicity moved to the next person in the lineup. She didn't miss the slightly disappointed look on the girls face as Felicity quickly moved onto the next person. He was a smug looking young man with black hair and an expensive suit.

"Hi, I'm Tommy Merlyn. It's great that you've come to stay with us." Felicity gave him the same smile she gave Thea. She had heard about the Merlyn family. That they weren't Bratva but they were good allies and helped get the Bratva things by easily using Merlyn Global as a front instead of having Bratva ties to it. She didn't have a response to his statement so she simply move to the next person.

"I'm John Diggle, Mr. Queen's right hand man. It's nice to meet you Miss. Smoak. You can call me Diggle or Digg." Felicity shook his hand.

_Great, another rule follower._ Felicity really hated being called Miss. Smoak, it felt too fancy and formal. The last person in the lineup was a short woman in an apron. She had a warm feel about her and Felicity felt a little better about her situation because the woman reminded her of home.

"Hello Miss. Felicity, I am Raisa. If there is anything you need, come see me. If you would like, I could give you something to eat or show you to your room."

"Seeing my room sounds lovely, I'm a bit tired." Raisa nodded and placed a hand in between Felicity's shoulder blades, gliding her to the stairs. She saw the looks on the faces of the people she just met and she knew what they were thinking. Why hadn't Felicity asked about Mr. Queen? He is the owner of the house, he should greet guests, right? Felicity knew better than that. Oliver Queen had a reputation for being cold and cruel and Felicity knew welcoming someone of little importance into his home was a waste of his time. She honestly hadn't expected to see him and she doubted that she would ever have a conversation with him. Raisa opened the door to a room and Felicity stepped inside.

"If you need anything, I will be in the kitchen. Mr. Roy knows where that is." She patted Felicity on the shoulder then left. Roy set her suitcase down on the bed and stepped back.

"Did you want to sleep?"

"Yes, actually."

"Alright," Roy headed for the door. "I'll be right out in the hall, yell if you need anything." Felicity nodded and remained standing till the door was closed. She sank down onto the bed and sighed.

_A day or so...yeah right._ Tears fell from Felicity's eyes and she didn't bother to wipe them away. _I've been here less than twenty minutes and I already want to go home_. Felicity laid down on the middle of the bed and curled herself into a little ball, as if to protect herself. _I just want to go home_.

 

***

_**I cheated and used Google Translate** _

Translation:

Darling(x2), stay safe

 

**Next**!

-Dinner with the Bratva members

-An explanation about Felicity's "severe mental problems"

-And Felicity meets Oliver (kinda)


	2. Can't Sleep, Can't Breathe

**Can't Sleep, Can't Breathe**

Dire straits and dirty consequences  
An invitation to your personal disaster  
It's a point break  
Another guilty conscience  
And I won't stop you til you get just what you're after  
  
I'm taking you down with me  
I'm taking you down with me  
Til you  
  
Can't sleep, Can't breathe  
You met your enemy  
Can't sleep. Can't breathe  
Won't get no peace with me  
  
You tried to tempt fate, be careful what you wish  
I'11 take you deeper and strip you of salvation  
It's a crusade to bring you to your knees  
It's what you wanted, your last manipulation  
  
I'm taking you down with me  
I'm taking you down with me  
Til you  
  
Can't sleep. Can't breathe  
You met your enemy  
Can't sleep. Can't breathe  
Won't get no peace with me  
  
The lower you go the less that you'll know  
You're sinking to the bottom now  
You're losing control  
The lower you go  
You're sinking to the bottom now

 

Someone was shaking Felicity awake. She slowly slid her eyes open and saw Roy kneeling by her bed.

"I'm sorry to wake you Miss. Smoak but its time for dinner." Felicity's sat up and adjusted her glasses.

"I'm not very hungry, Roy." He gave her a sympathetic look and stood.

"I'm sorry but it's mandatory. You are the guest of honour for this evening, and several other Bratva members have joined us for the meal." Felicity shifted over to the edge of the bed and stood beside Roy. "If it makes you feel better, Mr. Queen allowed you to sleep through the appetizer."

"Well, I guess that's good. The less time I spend with those men, the better." Felicity said somewhat bitterly. Roy raised a questioning eyebrow. "At home, whenever we had guests over, they would ignore me or generally scare me with the questions they asked. Whenever that happened I always had my mother to talk to and my father to keep the men in check. I doubt I'll get that here." Roy thought about it for a second, then got an idea.

"How about this, since I can't actually stop the men from saying or doing anything, if you start to feel uncomfortable, tap your finger against your plate and I'll come to your rescue."

"How will you manage that?"

"I'll stand by Raisa and have her excuse you from the table. She'll make up something and since all the men adore her, they won't say anything about it. I'll stand by her and when you want to leave, I'll tell her to grab you." Felicity smiled sweetly.

"Thank you Roy, I'll be sure to do that if the time comes." Roy made a sweeping gesture towards the door and the two of them exited her room. Felicity followed Roy down the hall and the stairs and into a large dining room. All but one of the seats were filled which meant that nine people were seated at the table. Mr. Queen sat at the head of the table because he was the owner of the house, six Bratva members sat around him and Tommy and Thea sat at the opposite end of the table. The seat at the end of the table was vacant so Felicity made her way over, hands clasped in front of her.

"Dobryj vyechyer, господа. [Good Evening Gentlemen]" Felicity said quietly, nodding in the direction of the men.

"Miss. Smoak," One of the men closest to Mr. Queen smiled at her. Felicity remembered him from several of her fathers dinner parties. He ran the Australian branch of the Bratva. Slade Wilson. "It's nice to see you again." All six of the men stood before Felicity had the chance to pass by them. She came to a stop and turned towards them. They huddled around her and each took her small hands in their large ones, kissing her knuckles as they whispered condolences. The last man, Mr. Wilson, spoke loud enough for the whole room to hear.

"We are all so dreadfully sorry to hear about your father. He was a good friend to all of us. Don't forget that we are here for you. Bratva before blood." Felicity walked briskly to her seat, her bare feet silent against the hardwood floor. A plate was immediately set in front of her and everyone else at the table. Felicity kept her eyes trained on her food, not in the mood for a conversation.

"How very nice of you to join us, Miss Smoak. I trust you slept well?" She looked up to see Oliver Queen staring at her over his wine glass. Felicity felt like his eyes were searing a burn mark into her head with the way he was looking at her and she had to resist the urge to shift uncomfortably. She knew he was wearing a mask. Not a physical one but a theoretical mask that not only hid his true emotions but it made him more approachable, almost human looking. She had seen her father wear the same mask whenever company came over.

From what she heard, Oliver was a lot like her father. Cold, cruel, calculated, merciless. She knew however that he must have had softer side, probably for his family because that's what Felicity experienced from her father. Love, kindness, admiration. She could tell she was dealing with a calculated Mr. Queen at the moment. Felicity knew she had to pick her response very carefully because even though Mr. Queen's tone was loose, his words spoke in volumes. She could tell he was saying that she should be grateful for being able to skip part of dinner and she truly was.

"Yes, thank you, Mr. Queen. I appreciate you letting me sleep for a little longer, it's been a crazy past few days." Mr. Queen nodded and began a conversation with one of the men near him. Felicity let out a breathe.

_I could have sworn he was going to chew me out._ The rest of dinner continued effortlessly and with only Thea and Tommy paying attention to her, she didn't need Roy to bail her out at any point. When dessert was severed Felicity decided to ask Thea some questions.

"So, do you know who will be watching over me tonight?" Tommy raised an eyebrow, fork halfway to his mouth. Felicity cringed. "I didn't mean to make it sound that creepy. I meant, who will be my bodyguard while Roy sleeps?" Thea paused for moment.

"Reggie, I think. There were a bunch of new guys who came when Oliver hired Roy. So a new guy is guarding you at nights."

"Will it always be the same guards? At home they switched every once and awhile." Tommy shook his head.

"You'll always have Roy during the day and Reggie at night, unless Oliver says otherwise."

_Oh yes, what Mr. Queen says, goes. Wonderful. I love it when people try and control every aspect of my life._ Felicity pushed the food on her plate around.

"So, who do you guys have watch you during the day?" Thea gestured with her head in the direction of two men behind Tommy, at the far wall.

"I have the brunette, Peter, and Tommy has the blonde, Felix." Felicity looked to her right and saw the men Thea was talking about. The blonde had a nasty scar that ran across his face, starting at his jaw, running diagonally up his face to his eyebrow.

"Sometimes when people in the house break off into pairs, only one bodyguard is required to watch the two people. It let's the other person have a break or do some stuff they need to get done." Felicity nodded, more interested in their conversation than eating.

"What about when you don't have a lot of guests over? Do some of the men sit for supper?"

"Oh yeah, all the time." Tommy said, swallowing his water. "But only the guys that have been around the longest. Newcomers like Roy, remain standing and eat when their shift ends."

"And Mr. Queen?"

"What about him?" Thea asked.

"Does he eat dinner with you as while?" Felicity was pretty sure she already knew the answer but asked anyways.

"Yeah right," Thea scoffed. "It's a miracle if Ollie eats with us. Most days Raisa brings him a tray and he eats in his office. Digg still comes to eat with us however." Felicity looked past Oliver at the other end of the table to Diggle. He was standing by the wall behind Oliver. Felicity's eyebrows drew together in confusion.

"I thought Diggle was Mr. Queen's right hand man, why is he standing like a guard?" Tommy glanced at Oliver and Digg before leaning towards Felicity.

"Actually, being a Bratva Captain, Oliver is pretty good at taking care of himself. Digg is kind of like a body guard, but he's mostly an adviser. He keeps Oliver level-headed and helps him with whatever dirty work needs to be done. It's only when a large amount of guests are over that Digg stands by the wall." Thea leaned forward as well.

"And between you and me, I think when it's a toss up between standing silently by the wall or sitting and talking with the men, I think Digg would pick the wall every time. He doesn't like Bratva politics very much." Felicity nodded at the new information.

_You and me both Diggle, you and me both._ As soon as dessert was finished, one of the men suggested they go have a drink. Felicity knew this invitation wasn't extended to her so she didn't pay any attention to their conversation as they stood. She saw they were all distracted and used the opportunity to it's full extent. While everyone began to stand so the men could go into the sitting room for their drink, Felicity used the time to grab her steak knife off the table. There was no way she was going to sleep in a strange house without some form of protection.

At home, her father had taught her how to use a gun, of course only when her mother was out of the house because she didn't like the idea of Felicity using a firearm. He gave her her very own gun on her sixteenth birthday and she always kept it with her when she slept. Unfortunately, she didn't have time to grab and hide it in her bags before leaving home so at the moment, she didn't have any weapon to use if she needed to defend herself. Since her father had always told her to be prepared, Felicity had sewn hidden pockets on all her clothes, perfect for storing things that she really didn't want people to find. The pocket on this particular dress was under the hem and since Felicity was still seated, she managed to easily slip it in. With the knife tucked away, Felicity stood and felt a twitch in her hand and looked down to see her hands shaking slightly.

_Oh frack._ She hadn't been kidding with her mother about her mental illness. Being the daughter of a Bratva Captain meant that Felicity had seen a lot of horrible things, and once or twice had to do some horrible things. All of this piled up in Felicity's intelligent little brain and she became prone to panic attacks. Hers weren't as severe as others but she did need to take medication to stop her from reliving her horrible memories. Sometimes they were triggered when Felicity was in stressful situations or they would just start up at random times. Felicity knew that after a minute or so her whole body would be shaking and even though her vision would go, she would still be standing and conscious. Her brain would replay the worst moments of her life on a loop, getting more intense and she would eventually pass out from shock. Felicity knew she needed to take her medication right that minute or she might have a breakdown in the dining room.

She nodded at all the passing men as they made their way out of the room. Tommy and Thea had disappeared and it was only Roy, Felicity and Oliver still in the dining room. Felicity started for the stairs but Mr. Queen put a hand on the inside of her elbow, stopping her. He leaned down so he was slightly more her level.

"Enjoy your sleep Miss. Smoak. I would like to have a chat with you in the morning." The words sounded nice enough but Oliver's tone was crisp. He released her arm and as soon as he was gone from the room, she all but ran for the stairs. Before she shut her bedroom door, Felicity bid Roy a goodnight. She raced over to her bag, hands shaking violently as she unscrewed the cap of her pill bottle. She downed two without water and sighed in content as her body and mind calmed down. She got dressed quickly for bed then retrieved the knife from her dress. Felicity crawled under the covers, placing one hand and the knife under her pillow. She was in a strange room and house but just like before, she feel asleep eventually.

 

A small noise woke Felicity. She had spent years learning how to react before thinking, her body could even complete a task before she was actually awake and functioning. She could hear what sounded like someone whispering and her eyes opened ever so slightly to see a man standing beside her bed. Felicity assumed it was her night bodyguard, Reggie, and was about to sit up and ask him what he was doing when she saw the long knife clutched in his hand.

So instead of asking questions, she screamed.

The man jerked, like he was surprised she knew he was there. Felicity tried to scrambled backwards but got tangled in her sheets as the man leapt forward to use his hand to smother her screams. He quickly climbed on top of her, using his weight to hold her down as he raised the knife, blade pointed at Felicity, above his head. When his arm came down, Felicity's flashed out to grab hold of his forearm to keep him from plunging the blade into her flesh. One arm not being enough, Felicity moved her other one to suddenly remember the steak knife in her hand. Her arm snaked out and she drove the knife into his abdomen. The man cried out, releasing his hold on her mouth and Felicity continued to scream. She pulled the blade out and repeated her previous action, once, twice-the man grabbed her hand and forced it down against the mattress. He raised his weapon once again but before he could use it, the door to her room burst open and Oliver was there, barefoot and shirtless, gun in hand. He raised the gun and squared off against the man on top of her.

"Put the knife down and get away from her." Felicity's watched as a sick smile slid across the man's face.

"We all have debts to pay Mr. Queen, I'm simply relieving you of yours." The knife came down and a shot rang out. The man cried out once again and while he was distracted, Oliver rushed him, tackling him not only off Felicity but straight over the side of the bed. Felicity threw off her covers and sprinted out the door and down the hallway. She was in the front foyer when she collided with someone. She screamed again but reassuring words pierced through her fear and adrenaline.

"It's alright Miss. Smoak!" Felicity stopped struggling and looked up to see Diggle holding her lightly by the shoulders. "You're okay now, what happened?"

"I-I was sleeping a-and a man came into my room and attacked m-me. Mr. Queen stopped him."

"Is that why you're covered in blood?" Felicity looked down and saw that not only was she still carrying the bloody steak knife but her light blue tank top had blood splatter on it. Felicity's hands began to shake for a second time that night and it became difficult to breathe. She couldn't tell if she was going to have an episode or if she was going into shock. However one thought kept replaying in her head.

_I'm not safe._ Felicity gripped the knife tighter in her hand and stepped away from Diggle. "I'm not safe here. This was supposed to be a place where I was looked after! This was supposed to be a safe place! I don't even know why I'm here!" Felicity's whole body began to shake and when Diggle took a step forward she raised the knife to defend herself.

"Put the knife down Felicity, we're here to help-"

"Really? Because from what just happened, it seems like you're trying to kill me!" Roy, Tommy and two other guards came into the foyer but Diggle waved them back. He knew that the best way to unarm Felicity was to have the least amount of people in the room and make her feel safe. And if push came to shove, he would want to sedate her. He mimed pushing a needle into his arm to Roy, who caught on and ran for the med kit in the kitchen. Thea came down the stairs and cried out in alarm.

"Oh my god! Felicity, are you okay?" She sped down the rest of the steps and was almost to her when Tommy grabbed her arm. "Hey! Tommy! She could be bleeding!" She struggled for a second before she saw that Felicity was holding a knife. "Holy shit." She muttered.

"I wouldn't advise getting close to the girl holding a knife and having a panic attack. Just let Digg do his thing, then we can go see her." Tommy whispered to Thea as he tugged her back a few feet. Tears leaked out of Felicity's eyes and she began to shout at Diggle.

"This would have never happened at my home! Why am I here? Because it's obviously not for my safety! I'm not safe here. I'm not safe. I'm not safe." Felicity continued to mumble those words to herself. She began to shake more and soon her whole body was uncontrollably shaking. Digg motioned for Roy to step forward with the sedative and Felicity spun on him.

"Stay away from me! You were supposed to protect me!" A look of hurt flashed across Roy's face before he quickly tossed the needle to Digg. It was airborne for less than a second and as soon as Digg had a good grip on it, he took a step forward and stuck it in Felicity's arm while she was yelling at Roy. "I'm not sa-safe here...I want-want to go home..." Diggle lowered Felicity to the ground as her legs gave out. She sat on her knees and continued to cry. "I'm not safe..."

"Miss. Smoak?" Felicity refused to look up. She stared at the carpet she was sitting on and a hand came into her view, reaching for the knife she was still holding. She was about to hold it out to protect herself when the person spoke again.

"Felicity?" _Oliver_. She released the knife and he took it away quickly. He placed his hands on her shoulders, pushing on them slightly to get her to look at him. Oliver was kneeling in front of her and Felicity couldn't figure out the expression on his face. Was he worried about her? Was he angry with her? Was he happy she was okay? Did he honestly not care?

"Are you alright? Are you hurt?" Felicity shook her head 'no'.

"I-I'm not hurt." Even in shock, Felicity still felt slightly humiliated about crying in front of a Bratva Captain. The humiliation disappeared when Oliver raised a hand to her face, thumb brushing under her eye, clearing away her tears.

"Are you alright?" Felicity knew he wasn't asking about her physical condition anymore.

"I don't think I'm safe here Mr. Queen." Felicity's head began to feel heavy, the sedative really kicking in. "I just want to go home." She mumbled softly.

"I can't let you do that, Felicity." He sighed. Felicity made an unhappy sound.

"Why not?" She rocked forward then back, before she tipped forward, and Oliver let her fall against his chest. Her forehead fell into the crook of his neck.

"Because I promised your mother I'd look after you." When Oliver didn't get a response, he wrapped an arm around Felicity's shoulders and under her knees and lifted her off the ground.

"Will she be okay?" Thea asked as Oliver walked towards her and the stairs.

"I don't know, Thea. I think she went into shock, she should be fine later in the day tomorrow." Thea nodded and stepped back to let him walked up the stairs. Oliver placed Felicity in a different guest bedroom, maneuvering her until she laid under the blankets.

"Mr. Queen?" Felicity mumbled. Oliver raised an eyebrow, surprised she was still conscious.

"Yes Miss. Smoak?"

"You're not as bad as I thought you would be." Oliver watched her features soften, telling him she was finally asleep. Diggle appeared in the doorway as Oliver moved a chair over to the side of the bed.

"Are you sure you don't want me to watch her?" Oliver shook his head, leaning forward to place his forearms on his knees, hands clasped together.

"It's three in the morning right now. On a regular day I would be getting up in three hours anyway. I doubt three hours less than I usually get will effect me too much. Go back to bed Diggle." Digg paused, looking at Felicity. "I know what you're thinking. We can protect her."

"Are we even sure this is the best place for her?"

"Tonight was the second attempt on her life in two days. She was lucky the first guy was caught poisoning her food before it got to her. If she had stayed in her own home, she would be dead by now." Oliver said lowly. Diggle shook his head tiredly.

"Alright, I'm going to bed. See you in a few hours, boss." Diggle closed the door behind him and Oliver sat back in the chair. He watched Felicity as she slept, blonde hair spilled over the pillow, pale face smooth with sleep. She surprised him tonight, not only with having and sneaking a knife with her into bed but successfully getting several blows to the man before Oliver showed up. That man had been right. Felicity was a debt Oliver was paying off but he sure as hell wouldn't let her be killed before that debt was paid in full.

***

 

 

**Next!**

More Raisa(cause she is awesome)

Oliver and Felicity talk and set some ground rules

Thea is a Queen


	3. Fuck You (Very Much)

  **Fuck You (Very Much)**  

Look inside  
Look inside your tiny mind  
Now look a bit harder  
'Cause we're so uninspired, so sick and tired of all the hatred you harbor

Well I think you're just evil  
You're just some racist who can't tie my laces  
Your point of view is medieval

Fuck you  
Fuck you very, very much  
'Cause we hate what you do  
And we hate your whole crew  
So please don't stay in touch

Fuck you  
Fuck you very, very much  
'Cause your words don't translate  
And it's getting quite late  
So please don't stay in touch

Do you get  
Do you get a little kick out of being slow-minded?  
You want to be like your father  
It's approval you're after  
Well that's not how you find it

Do you  
Do you really enjoy living a life that's so hateful?  
'Cause there's a hole where your soul should be  
You're losing control of it and it's really distasteful

Fuck you  
Fuck you very, very much  
'Cause we hate what you do  
And we hate your whole crew  
So please don't stay in touch

Fuck you  
Fuck you very, very much  
'Cause your words don't translate and it's getting quite late  
So please don't stay in touch

Fuck you, fuck you, fuck you,  
Fuck you, fuck you, fuck you,  
Fuck you

You say, you think we need to go to war  
Well you're already in one,  
'Cause its people like you  
That need to get slew  
No one wants your opinion

Fuck you  
Fuck you very, very much  
'Cause we hate what you do  
And we hate your whole crew  
So please don't stay in touch

Fuck you  
Fuck you very, very much  
'Cause your words don't translate and it's getting quite late  
So please don't stay in touch

Fuck you, fuck you, fuck you  
Fuck you, fuck you, fuck you

 

Felicity awoke in a cold sweat. She was tangled in her sheets and struggled to free herself.

"Need a hand?" Felicity jerked at the sound of someone's voice. The fear from last night bubbled back up until she saw who had spoken.

"Diggle," Felicity breathed in relief. "How long have you been in here?" Digg pushed his sleeve up and checked his watch.

"About twenty minutes. My shift just started."

"Your shift?" Felicity asked in confusion. "Was someone watching me earlier?"

"Oliver." Digg said simply. Felicity was sure her eyebrows shot up to her hairline.

"Oliver." She stated. Digg nodded. "Oliver? As in Mr. Queen? The rough looking gentleman who is rumored to have an ill-temper and has a tendency to completely ignore people and their feelings? He guarded me last night?" Diggle smiled a bit and stood.

"Yes Miss. Smoak. He might not be the best people person but when it comes to his job, he is the man go to."

"Job?" Digg moved to the door and opened it.

"You can ask him all the questions you want when he calls for you later this morning. You should get dressed and have some breakfast. Roy will show you to the kitchen when you're ready." Digg left and Felicity let out a breath. Mr. Queen had watched over her last night. He sat in the chair, right beside her bed and watched her sleep. Felicity didn't know if she should have felt grateful or creeped out.

When she looked around the room, Felicity thought that she was still in the same room she was attacked in. However, the view from the window told her that she was on the other side of the house. Instead of facing the water, she now faced the forest to the left side of the house. She also realized that her clothes had been moved to the room and sat on a chair beside a large mirror. Felicity grabbed black jeans and tank top and a very dark blue knitted cardigan and quickly slipped her outfit on. After she pulled off her tank top she saw the dried blood spots that sprinkled across the right side. She dumped it in the garbage can and sighed. Though she hadn't been hurt physically, she felt emotionally drained. The last two days and nights had been filled with so much sadness and anger and adrenaline, Felicity was sure she was going to pass out at any second.

And it was showing. She buttoned up her large cardigan in front of the mirror, noticing her pale face, blue eyes standing out more. Felicity liked that most days, having her eyes bright and full. The only problem was her eyes were sad. She turned away from the mirror, no longer wanting to see her reflection. She slipped her glasses on and exited her room. Roy was standing beside the door frame, stiff as a board. Felicity hadn't forgotten the harsh words she had said to him last night or the expression on his face when they came out of her mouth. They stared at each other for a moment.

"So, Digg says you know the way to the kitchen." Roy nodded and made his way down the hall. He opened a door at the end of a hall and motioned her inside. It was another hallway, only the walls were a lot closer together. There were only three doors in the hallway, two right across from each other. The other was at the very end of the hall, on the same wall as one of the doors.

"What is this place?" Roy squeezed past Felicity and she followed as he continued to walk.

"This is the servants hallway. We only have Raisa and Carson, and those doors are their bedrooms. There is a short cut in here that leads straight into the kitchen. Thea uses it all the time." Felicity's eyebrow and corner of her lip raised.

"Thea? Not Miss. Queen?" She watched Roy to see if he would flinch at the mistake or apologize but he never paused.

"I called her Miss. Queen when I first got here and she kept telling me to stop because she didn't like it. Every time I called her it she would hit me with something, usually a book. I told her I couldn't stop because I had my orders. She ended up having a very loud conversation with her brother but proudly left his office telling me that I was going to call her Thea from then on out." Roy opening another door and began to walk down a narrow staircase.

"I wish I could hit you with a book whenever you did it to me." Felicity mumbled. They exited the staircase and Felicity marveled at the large kitchen. She always loved food and kitchens were the part of houses that she loved the most. This kitchen was large and bright, with big windows above the sinks and doors that led directly to the patio. The wall that had the sliding doors to the patio was all glass. Felicity could see straight out to the yard and water. She tilted her head to the side as she did some calculations in her head.

"Is Mr. Queen's office above the kitchen?" She asked turning to face Roy. 

"Yeah, if you knocked out the wall directly at the end of the servants hallway, you would be in his office. How did you figure that out?"

"When I was outside yesterday, I saw him in his office. From where I was standing parallel to the mansion, this would have been his view of the water." She gestured to the backyard.

"Hello Miss. Felicity!" Both Roy and Felicity spun to see Raisa standing by the kitchen island. Felicity smiled at the woman.

"Good morning Raisa." Raisa stepped forward to stand beside Felicity, grabbing her shoulders by the lightest of touches, steering her in the direct of the island. Felicity took the hint and sat down on one of the stools.

"What would you like for breakfast? I can make anything you would like." Felicity thought for a moment.

"Scrambled eggs on toast?" Raisa nodded and walked over to the fridge. As she rummaged through it, she called back over to Roy.

"And you, Mr. Roy?"

"I'll have the same thing." In anticipation for her meal, Felicity started to roll up the sleeves of her cardigan as it was so long, it fell well past her hands.

"Digg said that Mr. Queen was going to want to talk to me this morning. Do you know why?" Felicity didn't exactly direct the question at any particular person.

"He'll want to establish some ground rules, let you know what you can and cannot do or where you're allowed to go. He probably also wants to talk about last night." Raisa froze while whisking the eggs.

"What happened last night?" Roy gave her a confused expression.

"No one told you? Felicity was attacked last night. Guy with a knife tried to kill her." Felicity was grateful Roy left out the part about them needing to sedate her. Raisa rounded the counter in a hurry, suddenly pulling Felicity into a standing position.

"Why am I the last to know these things?" She mumbled. Raisa pulled Felicity into a hug, rubbing a soothing hand up and down her back. "Did he hurt you?"

"No I'm fine." Felicity pulled back and held her arms out to the sides as if to show she was still intact. Raisa shot a look at Roy.

"What?" He asked dejectedly.

"If anything ever happens you keep me in the hole." Felicity smiled a little at the woman's slightly improper English.

"I think you mean the loop. You want him to keep you in the loop." Raisa waved a hand in front of her, dismissing the mistake.

"Yes, yes, loop, hole, it is the same thing." She sighed and returned to the food. "You Americans and your sayings." Felicity laughed and Roy shook his head smiling. When everything was ready for them to eat, Roy sat down a few seats away from Felicity. She noticed him sitting far away and paused with her fork halfway to her mouth.

"What's up with the distance? I won't bite."

"Or try and stab me?" Felicity knew the joke was meant to be lighthearted but it gave her an awful feeling, like her skin was crawling. Roy sighed heavily, hating himself a little. "That was uncalled for and it's way too soon to make jokes, I'm sorry. I'm sitting here because I have full view of all the entry and exit points. I'm also at a distance that I can reach you easily if I need to."

"Are we always going to eat lunch and breakfast like this? With you being on high alert?" Roy shrugged.

"Yeah, of course. I have good reason to be on high alert, remember?" Felicity nodded and the two of them continued to eat. She noticed that Raisa was preparing a plate of food.

"Who's getting breakfast in bed?" Raisa smiled at Felicity's question, continuing to place food on the tray.

"Mr. Oliver likes to eat his food in his office. He gets a lot of calls at this time." Felicity looked at the clock above the large oven.

"He gets a lot of calls at 7:30 in the morning?" Felicity stood, grabbing Roy's empty plate as she passed and set them in the sink.

"From Russia, yeah. There is a-"

"Eight hour time difference. Right, I forgot it's three in the afternoon for them." She looked at the contents of the plate.

"Coffee, toast, a hard boiled egg and an apple. My father used to eat plain food like that for breakfast too." Roy stiffened at her words, waiting to see if she would become sad or cry over the mention of her dead father. Felicity didn't show any signs of sadness.

"Miss. Felicity, would you do me a favour and take Mr. Oliver his breakfast? He will want to see you soon enough." Felicity nodded, grabbing the handles of the tray.

"C'mon Roy, show me the way." On their way out, Felicity grabbed a red apple out of the bowl and set it on the tray. When Roy gave her a look she responded. "I'm still hungry." Up the staircase and through several hallways, Roy stopped at a door.

"This is him. Just so you know, I won't be going in with you. I'll be out here when you leave." Roy knocked on the door, opening it for Felicity when he heard a 'Come in.' from inside. Felicity slipped past Roy, hearing the door close behind her. The office was a lot bigger than her bedroom, it was a lot longer too. It reminded her a bit of Ike's room in the third book of 'The Series of Unfortunate Events.' It gave her a warm feeling with all the browns, reds and blacks colouring the room, making her think of the fall weather outside. There was a large rectangular oak table in front of her that could seat ten easily. The space from the walls to the table was wide and Felicity saw in awe as she walked towards the back of the room that the walls were covered with books. The shelves had been carven out of the wall, books packed tightly together. Two dark red leather sofas sat against the walls opposite each other. Felicity finally looked up to the back of the room to see Mr. Queen sitting at his desk. The window behind him, which she had first seen him in yesterday, looked massive in the actual room.

Felicity still felt unsure about the Bratva Captain. He seemed very cold when she spoke to him at supper and after it. However he had managed to calm her down after she was attacked. His eyes had looked almost soft. She was sure that she didn't really have anything to fear when it came to him. Mr. Queens desk was on a raised platform, meaning Felicity had to climb up two steps to stand in front of the desk. Mr. Queen closed whatever he was reading, moving it to the side, and clasped his hands together on his desk. He gestured for her to put the tray down on the empty spot on his desk. She quickly grabbed her apple before sitting in the leather chair opposite him. Before he could speak, Felicity beat him to it.

"Thank you."

"For what Miss. Smoak?" Felicity was pretty sure he already knew what she was thanking him for.

"Making sure that I was okay, that I was looked after. For protecting me." Felicity unconsciously picked at the skin of the apple while Mr. Queen stared at her. "

I was doing my job Miss. Smoak." Suddenly Felicity remembered what Digg had said to her about Mr. Queen being good at his job. She still didn't know what that meant but she had a feeling it had something to do with why she was here.

"And what job is that Mr. Queen?"

"My job is to protect you and keep you safe." Felicity narrowed her eyes at him.

"I never asked to be kept safe. I don't even know why I had to leave home."

"You might not have asked to be kept safe but if last night was any indication, you need protection. Your mother left you here because this is the safest place for you." Felicity scoffed, rolling her eyes.

"I was almost killed. How is here any safer than my home?"

"Because here we were able to catch the man who attempted to take your life. At your home, the attempted assassin got away." Felicity sat straight up in her chair, almost dropping her apple. "

What?" She asked in shock. Mr. Queen stood, buttoning his suit jacket closed and rounded his desk.

"The day before you came here, an unknown assailant broken into your home and was caught trying to poison your food. The man escaped and your mother felt it was safest for you to be here. The men at your home weren't able to catch the man that tried to kill you. Here, we not only caught him, but we also got some information out of him." Felicity sat up straighter at this knowledge.

"What did you find out? Do you know why he was trying to kill me?" Mr. Queen sat on the edge of his desk. Felicity supposed it was to make him seem more casual but it honestly made her feel like he was towering over her. Intimidating her.

"He was a Triad member." Felicity blood ran cold. The Chinese Triad had been enemies with the Bratva for a long time. They were fighting for the same turf and the same international clients. The Triad believed that they were entitled to America, but so did the Bratva. They were constantly at each others throats and there was a lot of Bratva blood on Triad hands. However Bratva had even more Triad blood on their hands to even the score.  

"So you killed him?" Mr. Queen raised an eyebrow.

"Pardon?"

"You said 'was'. That implies that he used to be a Triad member and I doubt that you would offer him a job after he tried to kill me so I am assuming he is now dead because he was a Triad member when he was alive and he would no longer be a Triad member if he was dead..." Felicity trailed off as she realized she was rambling. "So you killed him." She came back around to her original thought. Mr. Queen nodded.

"Yes I did. I did get some information out of him before I did so." Felicity's sat up straighter.

"What did you find out?"

"I'd like to hear your recollection of last nights events. See if your story and his match." Felicity scowled.

"Why? So you can make sure that I didn't have a hand in planning my own assassination?" Mr. Queen leveled her with a stoney expression.

"I'd like to know what happened before I came in." Felicity sighed and was about to start explaining when Mr. Queen cut her off. "Why don't you start with the dinner party, and when you snuck that steak knife upstairs." Felicity could hear the disapproving tone to his voice.

"While you and the other men were occupied, I snuck my knife in my pocket." Mr. Queen raised an eyebrow.

"That was a skin tight dress, how did it have pockets?" Felicity wanted to ask him about the fact he had remembered details about her dress but she decided to let it slide.

"Almost, skin tight dress. The hem at the bottom gave me enough room to sew in a pocket." Felicity continued with her recollection of the night, Mr. Queen watching her intently as she spoke. "And then you came in." Mr. Queen nodded, absentmindedly.

"Is there anything else you remember? The smallest detail could be the most important."

"Jeez, pressure much?" Mr. Queen tilted his head disapprovingly. "Um, he was muttering something to himself." Felicity thought a little harder. "Oh! And he seemed surprised that I was awake, like him talking to himself shouldn't have woken me."

"The muttering," He said, standing. "Was probably a Chinese prayer. Triad members often give a prayer to those they believe are worthy of living in the next life." Mr. Queen grabbed a small wooden box from the top shelf of the bookcase closest to his desk. It was pretty high up and Felicity was sure she would have to climb the case to just reach the top shelf. However Mr. Queen grabbed it with ease.

"The man admitted to drugging your drink before it was served to you. It was meant to keep you unconscious while he snuck in and killed you."

"I didn't drink any wine last night. It was white wine, I prefer red. I did drink the water at dessert." He nodded again and leaned against the desk, setting the box down. "What else did he say?" Mr. Queen shrugged.

"The usual." _Ah,_ Felicity thought. _The usual Triad speech before death. The Bratva will fall and the Triad will rise from its ashes. Blah blah blah._

"What about that comment he made about a debt?" Mr. Queen looked a little surprised she mentioned that.

"I told you that you're here so I can protect you. Your father saved my life once, and I was in his debt. When he died, the right to cash in that debt fell to your mother. She believes that this is the safest place for you. The house of a Bratva Captain. So I am paying off my debt to your father by protecting you." Oliver slid the wooden box closer to the edge of the desk, closer to Felicity. He opened it and inside was a wide assortment of knifes. Felicity's eyes grew wide.

"What are these for?"

"These are for your protection. Since you believe it's best for you to have a weapon of some sort, I am giving one of these knifes." Felicity reached out, fingertips skimming over the handles of the knifes. She selected a silver pocket knife and pulled it out of the case. She pulled on the blade a bit then flicked her wrist, blade flashing out at attention. Felicity smiled.

"So you're giving this to me? To keep? Well, not forever I guess because I don't think I'll be staying here for the rest of my life, although if I get assassinated in this house then I will be here for the rest of my life but I'm sure I'll be really well protected because right now that's your job-"

"Miss. Smoak." Mr. Queen cut her off. She shut her mouth with a click. She opened her mouth again then thought better of it and closed it again. "Yes Miss. Smoak?" He prompted her to speak.

"Please don't call me Miss. Smoak. It makes me feel old and it's way too formal. If I'm going to be staying here for awhile I'd rather not be called Miss. Smoak all the time."

"Alright, Felicity." Mr. Queen said slowly, like he was savouring the sound of her name on his tongue. He grabbed the box of knifes and set it back on the shelf. When he turned around Felicity wasn't in the chair anymore yet was standing in front of the big window. Mr. Queen made his way over to her and found her staring intently out the window. "Felicity?"

"I'm sorry," She said softly. "I've been inside most of my life. I take every chance I get to be outdoors although right now I'm just looking out a window and I'm not actually outside but this window is so big so it seems almost like I'm outside..."Felicity trailed off, noticing that she was babbling again. She noticed that this time around however Mr. Queen didn't cut her off. She looked over at him to find his eyes raking up over her body. She watched his eyes moving torturously slow and when they finally met hers, she saw no embarrassment of being caught doing so.

"Why are you wearing such dark clothing?" Felicity couldn't hide her shock or confusion at his question.

"I'm in Mourning Mr. Queen. No bright colours for a month." He nodded like he had forgotten. 

"Of course." Mr. Queen paused. "Your sweater looks fairly large, compared to your size."

"Yeah, well, it was my fathers. I know it kind of looks like it's eating me-I mean that it's so big that I'm engulfed in it, not like, you know, eating me..." Felicity sighed and started again. "I kind of stole it from his room before I left. It's comfy and it smells like him." They stood in silence for a little longer.

"I should let you go eat your breakfast." Mr. Queen said calmly. Felicity smiled weakly.

"Is that your polite way of telling to get out of your office? I've already eaten my breakfast." Mr. Queen smiled slightly and let out a small chuckle.

"I'm not kicking you out Felicity." She shrugged.

"It's alright, I should let you eat in peace." She rounded his desk to grab her apple. "You might want to wipe away your smile Mr. Queen, or else some people might start to think that you're not as cold hearted as they thought." Mr. Queen raised an eyebrow.

"Is that so?" His fingertips glided along the top of his desk as he stalked towards her. His fingers wrapped around Felicity's wrist and he turned until she was backed up against the side of his desk. He placed his other hand flat on his desk, trapping her. "And what do you think of me Felicity?" Felicity swallowed loudly as Mr. Queen leaned slightly forward.

"I think that you're not as mean as everyone thinks. I think that you have a softer side that you reserve for your family." Mr. Queen smiled at her guess. He didn't speak for a minute and Felicity felt like she had to break the silence. "Am I right?"

"I'm neither confirming or denying your guess. I almost forgot," He continued, fingers flexing around her wrist. "We need to set up some rules."

"R-rules, Mr. Queen?" Felicity asked, honestly distracted by the feel of his fingers moving on her skin.

"Call me Oliver." He said, breath warm against her face as he leaned in closer. "You are only allowed to enter the kitchen, the sitting room, the library, the entertainment room and your bedroom. Everywhere else you must ask permission to enter."

"But-" Felicity interjected angrily.

"Don't interrupt me." He said lowly. "You are only allowed to leave the house and the premise when you get direct permission from me. You will do exactly as Roy tells you because he is getting his orders from me. You will not talk back and you will do as your told. Disobey me and you will not like the consequences." Oliver reached past her and brought her apple up in front of her. "Have a good rest of your morning Felicity." Felicity, being stubborn, didn't take the apple and shoved at Oliver's chest. He didn't budge.

"If it's all the same to you, Oliver," She drawled. "I'd like the power to have freedom of speech and to not be kept in this house like a prisoner."

"My house, my rules." He said sharply. Felicity narrowed her eyes at him.

"What kind of consequences will you inflict upon me Mr. Queen?" Felicity practically shouted. "What are you going to do? Flog me?" Felicity let out an angry grumble. "That was not meant to come out!" Oliver smiled down at her smugly.

"Don't tempt me, Miss. Smoak." He dropped the apple into her hand and stepped away from her to round his desk and sit down. "I have work to do." Felicity gave him a nasty look. "Now I am telling you to get out of my office." Felicity huffed angrily but turned and left his office none the less. She made a point to slam the door behind her.

"Not go well I take it?" Roy asked from his position beside the door.

"Not at all." She shook her head, trying to shake the angry thoughts out of her head. She turned back to Roy. "Can you show me where the library is? Apparently it's one of the only rooms I can enter freely." Roy chuckled but covered it up with a coughing fit when Felicity threw him a glare. Felicity followed Roy around the house until he opened a big pair of double doors, revealing the grandiose room. Felicity marvelled at the rows upon rows of books. She spotted a grouping of leather chairs and was about to sit down when she saw the chair was already occupied.

"Thea!" Felicity said in alarm. Thea laughed.

"Be careful, I wouldn't want you to sit on me." She set down the magazine she was flipping through. "How are you? Feeling okay?" Felicity nodded and sat opposite Thea. Roy walked over and stood behind Felicity's chair, mirroring Thea's bodyguard, Peter.

"I'm not 100%, but I feel a lot better than last night."

"Oh thank god!" Thea dramatically placed a hand on her chest in relief. "I thought we were going to have to cancel the party." Felicity sat up.

"What party?"

"The party we're having for you at the end of the week." Thea said slowly. "Has no one told you?"

"No. Why are you throwing a party?"

"Because you're the new addition to the house. We want to celebrate you." Thea beamed. A thought occurred to her and a look of concern came across her face. "Wait, do you have anything to wear? Because if you don't we'll need to go shopping because none of my things are going to fit you." Thea stood and grabbed Felicity's hand, tugging her to her feet. Felicity dug her heels in.

"I can't go. Mr. Queen says I can't leave the house without his permission." Thea grinned.

"You leave Mr. Queen to me. I'll make sure you can leave with me." Thea dragged Felicity down the hall and back the Oliver's office. "Wait here." Thea slipped inside and Felicity stood by the door with the two men. Not too long after Thea entered, the voices inside got louder and the sound of something shattering came through the door. Felicity reached for the doorknob but Roy placed a hand on her shoulder, stopping her.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Felicity raised a questioning eyebrow. "It's for your safety. I can't guarantee that you won't be hit by a flying object." So they all waited patiently until the door swung open and a smug looking Thea walked out.

"Grab your coat Smoak. We're going shopping."

***

 

**Next!**

-Fun little shopping trip

-Tommy!

-Kissing?! (But who kisses who?)

-Protective Oliver (also a smidgen jealous)


	4. You're My Best Friend

**You're My Best Friend**

 

Ooh, you make me live  
Whatever this world can give to me  
It's you, you're all I see  
Ooh, you make me live now honey  
Ooh, you make me live

You're the best friend  
That I ever had  
I've been with you such a long time  
You're my sunshine  
And I want you to know  
That my feelings are true  
I really love you  
You're my best friend

Ooh, you make me live

I've been wandering round  
But I still come back to you  
In rain or shine  
You've stood by me girl  
I'm happy at home (happy at home)  
You're my best friend.

Ooh, you make me live  
Whenever this world is cruel to me  
I got you to help me forgive  
Ooh, you make me live now honey  
Ooh, you make me live

You're the first one  
When things turn out bad  
You know I'll never be lonely  
You're my only one  
And I love the things  
I really love the things that you do  
You're my best friend

Ooh, you make me live.

I'm happy, happy at home  
You're my best friend  
You're my best friend  
Ooh, you make me live  
You, you're my best friend.

 

 

Felicity was in awe of the power Thea had over her brother. Felicity assumed it would be too dangerous for her to leave the house but Thea managed to sway her brother. Mr. Queen's terms were simple. They had to take Diggle with them and at the first sign of danger they were to return home. At the moment they were waiting in the car for Roy.

"Isn't this exciting? I haven't gone shopping in such a long time!" Thea said happily.

"I thought you went shopping all the time. That's what's always in the magazines and the papers." Thea waved a dismissing hand.

"Yeah, of course but it's been a really long time since I've gone out shopping with another woman. Friends make the experience more fun." Felicity picked at the hem of her jacket.

"I know the feeling. Not having a lot of friends, I mean. Also being shut out or away most your life."

"Like you're a glass sculpture everyone needs to keep safe." Thea said softly. Felicity met Thea's eyes and saw the same pain in hers that she saw in her own. The had both been locked away most of their lives, kept hidden from threats but in turn, the world. The passenger door was yanked open and Roy sat down next to Felicity.

"You look like a hoodlum!" Thea laughed out, her earlier demeanour gone. Roy was wearing jeans, a black t-shirt and a red hoodie.

"I have to blend in Thea, I'm the guard walking around with the two of you. If I wore my suit, I'd stick out like a sore thumb." Thea tapped on the glass behind her that separated the driver and the passengers. The car started to move and the three of them conveyed pleasant conversation until they arrived at the mall.

The setup of their group of fairly simple. Roy would walk in between the two girls to ensure he could reach both of them if the need arose and Digg and Peter were to hang back, one a level above and one slightly behind them. The two women flew from shop to shop, buying shoes, jewelry, makeup and most importantly the perfect dress. The last item they were having some trouble with.

"I don't think this one works for me Thea..." Felicity said, unsure about the dress she was trying on. It was a deep green with long sleeves and a low back.

"You look fantastic Felicity." Thea assured her. "This is the best one yet." Felicity still felt unsure. It was a nice dark colour, perfect for Mourning, but it was showing a lot of skin even with the crisscross straps at the back.

"If you need a third opinion," Thea and Felicity turned to see Tommy standing behind the couch Thea was sitting on. "I think you look incredibly sexy." He flashed Felicity a sly grin. Thea smacked his arm as he came to sit next to her.

"No one asked your opinion Merlyn. She already knows she looks amazing. I told her so." Tommy raised an eyebrow.

"Oh really? Because it looked to me like Felicity needed some more convincing." He stood again, adjusting his navy blue sweater. He walked up to Felicity and used her shoulders to turn her back towards the mirror. His hands slid down from her shoulders to rest on her upper arms.

"You look amazing." Tommy purred as her set his chin on her shoulder. "Those sections of skin on your back are simply delicious. I bet every guy at your party is going to melt when he sees you."

"I don't see you melting." Felicity said coyly. Tommy smiled at her cockiness.

"That's because I had time to pick my jaw up off the floor before I came over to talk to you." Tommy stepped back and took Felicity's hand, twirling her around. "Buy the dress." Felicity nodded and when she exited the change room she had her dress taken from her and packaged in a matter of seconds. The clerk handed her back the bag and departed for the cash. Tommy linked arms with her and steered her towards the door.

"But I need to pay-"

"Already taken care of." Tommy waved his credit card in the air. "Consider it a gift. Or a favour." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and Felicity socked him in the arm. The group made their way towards the food court when Roy saw it. He leaned over to Felicity.

"Felicity, do you see those two men in the black suits?" She looked at him strangely.

"Where?"

"By the fountain." The fountain was way further down the stretch of mall but their suits contrasted against the casual wear of everyone else. Felicity saw what made Roy uneasy. The men were moving in Triad formation. The identical outfits and tied back hair confirmed Felicity's worries. Triad members always had long hair and it was mandatory for them to tie it back. It was a form of intimidation. The more important you were in the Triad chain, the longer your hair was. Roy discreetly told Digg and Peter through his ear piece.

"We need to get around them."

"Can't we just keep our heads down and walk past them?" Thea asked.

"No," Felicity answered. "Tommy draws enough attention being a handsome billionaire," She ignored the smile she got from Tommy. "And I'm sure by now every Triad member knows what you look like despite living indoors most of the time." She glanced around to assess their options. She tugged up the hood of her coat and shoved her hair into it. She began to rummage through her bag until she found a beanie and stuck in on Tommy's head.

"If we split off into pairs, we'll have a better chance of escaping. I'll go with Tommy, you two stick together." Felicity took her glasses off and handed them to Thea, who slipped them on. "I know this is asking a lot, but I think the best option is for us to act like couples." They all stared bug eyed at her and Felicity shrugged innocently. "Public displays of affection make people uncomfortable. There's more of a chance that they'll look away." Roy looked like he was about to protest when Thea cut him off.

"Oh just go with it Abercrombie." She grabbed his hand and laced her fingers with his. "Let's all meet at the smoothie stand as soon as we think it's safe." The group nodded and split up. Thea tugged Roy along behind her until they were tucked away in a corner. She backed herself up against the wall and pulled Roy in close.

"Wh-what are you doing?"

"Put your hands on my hips." Thea ordered. "We're showing a little PDA." She said after he complied. She glanced behind him and bit back a gasp. "One of them is coming closer. Kiss me." Roy shook his head in confusion and shock.

"What?" Thea rolled her eyes and grabbed Roy by the hood, simultaneously pulling it up over his head at the same instant her lips made contact with his.

 

Felicity was surprised at how well Tommy fell into the fake boyfriend role. He slipped his arm around her shoulders and she reached up to grab his hand in hers. Without her glasses she was basically blind and relied on Tommy for direction. He grabbed two discarded Starbucks coffees from a table that had yet to be cleaned off. The two of them sat at a nearby table, dragging their chairs close together and pretended to drink the coffee. Felicity snuck a glance over her shoulder.

"They're getting closer Tommy." Tommy reached out and grabbed her hand, squeezing tightly.

"Everything is going to be fine. I doubt they would try anything in such a public place." He said in a hushed whisper as they put their heads closer together to hide their faces. Tommy saw one of the two men suddenly turn and walk in a direct path towards them. "Sorry about this, just go with it."

Tommy leaned in suddenly, placing his lips over Felicity's. She let out a small noise of surprise but let herself play the part she needed to play. She put a hand on his chest and brought the other one up to his cheek. Tommy took her face lightly in his hands as his mouth moved against hers. Felicity curled her hand into his sweater and tugged him closer, deepening the kiss. Felicity could hear Tommy let out the starting of a groan but cut off the sound before it got too loud.

 

Roy gripped Thea's hips in surprise as she kissed him. He let himself melt into her and pushed her further against the wall. Their mouths moved together, hard and insistent, like they were drowning. Thea pulled harder at the material of Roy's hoodie, erasing any distance between the two of them. After a minute or so, Thea pulled her mouth from his. Roy tried to follow her but she gripped his chin and placed her thumb on his mouth.

"Easy there Tiger. We still need to reconvene with Tommy and Felicity." Roy nodded, like he had forgotten.

"Right, yeah, we should get going." He stepped back and they readjusted their clothes. Thea held Roy's hand, entering back into couple mode but before they started walking, she turned to him. He gave her a questioning look and she simply cupped his jaw and kissed him tenderly. Thea watched in satisfaction as she pulled back that Roy opened his eyes slowly, pulling himself together.

"What was that one for?"

"Because we're probably never going to do it again." She said sadly. Roy tightened his grip on her hand and they started towards the smoothie stand, Thea checking her phone.

 

Tommy and Felicity kissed for a little longer before they broke apart, breathing heavily. Felicity didn't open her eyes at first but when Tommy nudged her nose, they fluttered open.

"You see them Felicity?" Her eyes darted around but came up with nothing.

"No, you?" Tommy did the same and came up empty. He shook his head and Felicity pulled out her phone to text Thea. It took a little while before she replied. _'Making our way 2 the smoothie stand. They passed us awhile ago'_   Felicity looked up at Tommy.

"Babe, I could really go for a smoothie. How about you?" Tommy grinned brightly.

"I'd love one, but you're buying." Felicity smiled and they both stood, throwing out the coffee cups. Tommy tugged Felicity to his side by the arm he secured around her waist. They swiftly made their way to the stand and met up with Roy and Thea. The group quickly made their way to the nearest exit and made sure Digg and Peter were following suit. When they all piled into the car they let out a collective sigh of relief.

"That," Thea stated. "Was scary."

"Hell yeah." Tommy agreed. He nudged Felicity who was sitting beside him.

"Quick thinking you had back there." He handed her back the beanie and Thea passed her back her glasses.

"Thanks," She said, slipping the glasses on. "My mother made me read a lot of books about getting out of dangerous situations. I had monthly drills, sometimes at 3am. It was really fun." She said sarcastically. The group laughed and they had easy chit chat until they got home. When they pulled up to the house, the car was barely came to a stop when the car door was thrown open and Thea was pulled out. The rest of the group scrambled out of the car but were relieved to see Oliver standing in front of Thea.

"Are you alright?" Oliver asked in concern as he did a once over of her.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It was nothing. I don't think they recognized us." Oliver pulled Thea into a hug, one hand on her back, the other holding her head.

"I told you it wasn't a good idea to go out." Oliver stepped back from the embrace. "From now on, you and Felicity are under house arrest." Thea shrugged.

"Whatever. It's basically just like every other day of my life, right? Locked away like Rapunzel. Trust me Ollie, Felicity and I are used to it by now, so you don't need to worry about us. This isn't even a punishment, it's just a day like any other." She grabbed her purse from inside the car, slammed the door shut and walked inside with Peter and her shopping bags in tow. Oliver turned to Felicity.

"Do you have a problem with being under house arrest?"

"No," Felicity scoffed. "Thea's right. It's just like an ordinary day for us, being shut away in the house." She stormed up to Oliver. "I'm alright too, if you even care. Which you should, because it's your job." She spat. Tommy walked up and stood beside Felicity, whistling lowly at Oliver.

"Wow, pissed both of them off in one go. That has to be a record." Oliver turned his burning gaze on Tommy.

"What exactly are you doing here?" Tommy held his hands up in surrender.

"Woah, I was at the mall when I saw the girls. I was with them when we spotted the Triad. Felicity and I played the perfect couple to hide in the crowd." Tommy nudged Felicity.

"What?" Oliver asked in a mix of anger and confusion.

"We pretended to be a couple and acted all lovey dovey to make the people around us uncomfortable. Intimate displays of affection make people feel uneasy." Tommy started to laugh. "That reminds me, you still owe me a favour, by the way." He said to Felicity.

"Nice try Merlyn, I'm pretty sure our kiss was all the favour you're going to get from me." Tommy laughed.

"That's not fair! I kissed you! If I hadn't they Triad would have found us."

"You kissed Felicity?" Oliver growled at his friend. He took a step forward and Tommy took a step back. The laughter melted from his features.

"Wait a second, you don't get to be angry with me. I helped keep her safe. I used the tools I could in a situation to benefit the both of us. You don't have the right to get angry. Besides, you might be in charge of protecting her Oliver, but last time I checked, she wasn't your property." Felicity took a step to stand right next to Tommy.

"I agree with Tommy. You weren't around so Tommy and I had to save ourselves." She set her hand on Tommy's bicep. "We used whatever tools we could. You don't get to jump down his throat just because you happen to worried about Thea and angry at the Triad members." Oliver took another step forward and caged Felicity against the car. He ripped her hand off Tommy and leaned in close.

"Go inside Felicity." He growled. She narrowed her eyes.

"No." Anger twisted in his features and Felicity could tell he was trying to hold back.

"Disobeying two of my rules already. No talking back and doing as you're told." Felicity's face hardened and Oliver suddenly felt something against his abdomen. He looked down briefly and saw Felicity holding her knife in her hand. His eyes flashed back to her face and she was smiling tightly.

"You gave me this to protect myself." She pushed it a little harder against his stomach and he stepped back releasing her. "Stay away from me. I might me under your protection but that doesn't mean you specifically have to watch me. So stay. Away. From. Me." Felicity hissed. She breezed past him, Roy quickly falling in step, as Oliver clenched his fists at his sides. Tommy laughed humourlessly.

"You really have a talent for pissing every off, don't you?" He too walked past Oliver and into the house. Oliver growled and smacked his hand on the top of the car in frustration. She had been in the house for a day and Felicity had already somehow upset the balance of Oliver's power and control. Everyone was talking back and seemed to be extra annoying.

_She's a challenge. I'll have to fix that._

_***_

 

**Next!**

-Last chapter before the party!

-Thea and Felicity bonding!

-Felicity decides she needs some fresh air.... Oliver doesn't like that

-Some more Olicity! Woot woot!

-Sara!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> UPDATE THINGY!  
> I'll try and post a new chapter before Friday because I'm going on a trip and don't know when I'll have time to update next week.  
> This trip also means I won't get to watch the new episode of Arrow (and maybe the Flash and the new show iZombie) until late Thursday night (tears and sadness).  
> BUT I will try and find time to post something this week and maybe something next week!  
> Thanks for reading! And commenting! (Each comment makes me smile like you wouldn't believe) And giving Kudos!  
> Hugs and Happiness and Things!  
> -Addie


	5. Popular

**Popular**

[Glinda] You see Elphie, now that we're friends, I've decided to make you my new project.

[Elphaba] You really don't have to do that.

[Glinda] [Brightly] I know. That's what makes me so nice!

  

[Sings] Whenever I see someone less fortunate than I

(and let's face it—who isn't less fortunate than I?)

My tender heart

Tends to start to bleed

And when someone needs a makeover

I simply have to take over

I know, I know exactly what they need

And even in your case

Though it's the toughest case I've yet to face

Don't worry—I'm determined to succeed Follow my lead

And yes, indeed You will be...

 

Popular!

You're gonna be popular!

I'll teach you the proper poise

When you talk to boys

Little ways to flirt and flounce

I'll show you what shoes to wear

How to fix your hair

Everything that really counts

 

To be popular!

I'll help you be popular!

You'll hang with the right cohorts

You'll be good at sports

Know the slang you've got to know

So let's start

'Cause you've got an awfully long way to go...

 

Don't be offended by my frank analysis

Think of it as personality dialysis

Now that I've chosen to become a pal, a sis-Ter and adviser

There's nobody wiser

 

Not when it comes to popular—

I know about popular

And with an assist from me

To be who you'll be

Instead of dreary who-you-were... or are...

There's nothing that can stop you

From becoming populer—lar...

 

La la la la

 

We're gonna make you popular...

When I see depressing creatures

With unprepossessing features

I remind them on their own behalf to think of

Celebrated heads of state or

Especially great communicators.

Did they have brains or knowledge?

 

Don't make me laugh! They were popular!

Please— It's all about popular!

It's not about aptitude It's the way you're viewed

So it's very shrewd to be

Very very popular Like me!

 

[Glinda] Why miss Elphaba, look at you You're beautiful

[Elphaba] I have to go

[Glinda] [Calls after her] You're welcome!

 

[Sings] And though you protest

Your disinterest I know clandestinely

You're gonna grin and bear it

Your new-found popularity

 

La la la la

 

You'll be popular

Just not quite as popular

As me!

 

Felicity was on the phone with her mother when Thea breezed into the room. "I gotta go mom. No, no, everything is fine. I love you. See you soon, bye." She hung up and dropped her cell on her bed.

"How's your mom?" Thea asked, leaning against the bed post.

"She's alright."

"Did you tell her about..." Thea made a downward stabbing motion in the air. Felicity shook her head.

"No, I don't want to freak her out. Or have her blame herself for sending me here." Thea nodded and stood to her full height.

"That's understandable. I wouldn't want my mom freaking out either."

"Speaking of, why haven't I met her yet?" Thea let out a hollow laugh and flung herself back onto Felicity's bed.

"My mother is currently in Switzerland," She said in a snotty tone. "Taking care of some "Personal Bratva Business", which I know is complete bullshit. I think she's taking a vacation with this dude she thinks she's hiding from us. Walter, I think that's his name. Anyway, she'll be back in time for you party tonight so you'll meet her there." Thea sighed. "Have you talked to my brother lately?"

Nope. It had been two days since the incident at the mall and Felicity hadn't even seen Mr. Queen in that time. She hadn't really expected him to back off completely and she was pretty surprised that she hadn't seen him at all for the past few days.

"No, I told him to steer clear of me and I guess he listened." Felicity said, sitting next to Thea. Thea snorted.

"Ollie? Listening to someone when he's told what to do? Ha! That's a first." Felicity sighed.

"Well, I can't avoid him forever. I'm probably guarantied to see him tonight."

"Speaking of tonight, I think we should go the whole nine yards when we're getting ready. Mani's, pedi's, face masks and junk food. Lots and lots of junk food." Felicity laughed at Thea's excitement.

"I thought we already went the nine yards when we went shopping!"

"We did, but that was the wardrobe department, I'm talking about the beauty department." Thea gasped suddenly and stood up, jumping on the bed in a frenzy. "We could invite Sara over! I haven't seen her in ages and I heard that she just got back from Tibet!" She leapt off the bed and ran for the door. "I'm going to go find her number which is probably hidden somewhere in my room. I'm also going to ask Roy to ask Raisa to get usual stuff I use when I get ready for a party." Felicity heard Thea giving him those instructions as she closed the door behind her. Felicity stood quickly and ran over to the window, throwing it open. The faint breeze blew in and Felicity smiled.

Two days! Two days she'd been locked in the house, being scolded if she even got close to a window. She finally had the freedom to be outside, a freedom she was denied at home and within a few days, it'd been taken away from her. God she wished she was home.

 _But home isn't safe._ A voice inside her head said. A voice that sounded like Oliver. A voice telling her to stay where it was safe.

 _But home is…home. It's where I feel safe. It has my mother and my servants who I feel are my family. And my computers! My beautiful babies, at home alone in my room, probably collecting dust!_ Felicity sighed and looked out at the window at the water. It seemed to be calling to her, the water, the wind. A voice broke through Felicity's thoughts.

"Help-" She could barely hear it and waited a moment before hearing it again. The voice seemed like it was coming from the direction of the shoreline. Worried that someone was in danger and without thinking, Felicity ran out of her room, down the servants staircase and out the kitchen doors. She ran across the lawn, slowing to a jog at the top of the hill, surveying the area for anyone. The cry came out again, louder now that she was closer to the water. Felicity still couldn't see anyone but became worried someone was trapped under the dock or in the tall grass surrounding the shoreline. She heard someone yell behind her and turned to see Roy leaning out of her bedroom window.

_Good, help!_

She made a frantic 'C'mere' motion with her hand and then turned back to the water, jogging down the hill.

 

Roy knocked once before opening the door to Felicity's bedroom, a whole basket of nail polish in his hand. "Felicity, you are not going to believe the amount of nail polish Thea owns..." Roy saw that he was talking to an empty room. "Felicity?" He said cautiously, rounding her bed and looking in the bathroom for her. He turned back to the rest of the room, panicking a little. The breeze drifted in from the window, letting Roy know it was open. He ran to it and saw Felicity in the yard.

"Felicity!" He yelled out to her. She looked relieved when she saw him and gestured for him to come outside. Then she ran out of his sight. "Damn it." Roy muttered. He ran out of the room, narrowly missing Thea.

"Woah! What's your rush?" She asked, stepping back as he ran down the hall.

"Felicity left!"

"Left?" Thea squeaked. "What do you mean left?" Roy was already around the corner. He knocked hectically on Mr. Queen's office door. He heard a loud sigh and before the 'Come in' was out of his mouth, Roy was throwing the door open. Mr. Queen and Diggle didn't look impressed. Whether it was because he came in so abruptly or because he wasn't with Felicity, Roy didn't know.

"Felicity's outside!" Both men turned to each other in shock then wheeled around to look out the window. Sure enough they could see the top of a blonde head down by the water. Mr. Queen stood in shock and, from his tense shoulders, anger. He turned sharply.

"Get outside!" He and Diggle jogged across the room. "Get her back!" Roy sped out of the office.

 

"Is there anyone out here?" Felicity called out as she pushed through the tall grass. She came to the edge of the shoreline and pulled off her flats, tossing them aside. She walked into the cold water to get a better look under the lip of the dock. "Is there someone there? Do you need help?" She walked in further, leaning down to look under the dock and came up empty handed.

"Felicity!" A sharp voice sounded behind her. Oliver was racing down the hill, Diggle and Roy in tow. If Felicity wasn't so preoccupied with the task of finding the person who needed help, she might have noticed the anger Oliver was giving off.

"Oh good," She said as she made her way out of the water. "I think I heard someone-ah!" Felicity yelled as Oliver grabbed her upper arm and yanked her towards him. He began to drag her up the hill and back towards the house.

"Hey! Wait-I thought-stop it-let go!" Felicity struggled against Oliver's hold. He suddenly swung her around so she was facing him and he had ahold of both her arms. His face was twisted with rage and Felicity leaned back, away from him, scared.

"Как ты можешь быть таким тупым? [How could you be so stupid?]" Oliver yelled at her in harsh Russian. "Что вы думали? Я сказал, что вы не должны были покинуть дом! Вы снова не подчинился мне! Вы могли бы погибнуть! [What were you thinking? I said that you were not to leave the house! You disobeyed me again! You could have been killed!]" The yelling and the harsh words were too much and Felicity started to fight him, overwhelmed. She tried to hit him the best she could with him holding her arms.

"What were you thinking?" Oliver switched back to English, realizing he was speaking another language, one she probably didn't know well enough to understand him. "I told you to stay in the house!" He shook her a little bit. Felicity pulled away from him, trying to get him to let go.

"Stop it! You're scaring me!" Her words were as effective as having ice water tossed on him. He let her go with a start and she stumbled back a step. She pushed her glasses up her face and sniffed.

"I'm sorry I left. I didn't mean to worry or anger you, I just-" She broke off clenching her eyes closed to keep tears away. "I just thought I heard someone calling for help. I didn't think. I just went to see if there was anyone in trouble." She wrapped her arms around herself. "I'm sorry. I'll go back to the house and stay there, I promise. I swear I'll never leave the house again." She took another step back away from him. She turned towards the house and Roy came up beside her, placing a hand on her back, ushering her inside. Oliver turned to Digg.

"I want a sweep of the entire property. Inform me about anything out of the ordinary. I want to know if there is someone on my property and if they need help." Oliver saw Felicity stop near the top of the hill. She looked back over her shoulder at him with a grateful expression.

'Thank you' She mouthed to him. He nodded. Felicity and Roy entered back into the house. When they were alone in one of the hallways, Felicity stepped in front of Roy.

"I'm so sorry," She whimpered. "I know what I did was dumb and I didn't think, I just acted and that must have scared you so much-" Felicity was closed to hysterics. Roy placed his hands on her shoulders, silencing her.

"Hey, it's okay. Well actually it's not. You really freaked me out for a minute there, just think next time, okay?"

"I know you must have been worried about what Mr. Queen would have done if you lost me." Roy shook his head, laughing lightly.

"Miss. Smoak, I was worried about you, not my job or the impending wrath of Mr. Queen." Felicity smiled weakly.

"Can you do me a favour? And I'll promise to always think things through if you do this for me." Roy nodded.

"I'll do whatever you want if it gets you to behave." Felicity laughed.

"Well, two things then. First, call me Felicity. I'll have Thea try and twist Mr. Queens arm into releasing you from this awful formality."

"Done. Second thing?"

"Figure out whatever is going on between you and Thea."

"Wh-what do you mean?" Roy stuttered. Felicity rolled her eyes.

"Oh, don't give me that innocent expression. Thea told me about your kiss at the mall."

"In my defence, she kissed me. And anyway, you kissed Tommy and I don't see you 'figuring out what's between you'."

"Yeah," Felicity said smartly. "Because there is nothing to figure out. Sure Tommy is handsome, and charming, and a billionaire but that doesn't mean we have anything going on. I see the way you look at Thea whenever you're in a room together."

"Oh yeah?" Roy asked, crossing his arms. "And how exactly do I look at her?"

"Like she's the most fascinating and beautiful piece of art you've ever seen." Felicity said softly. A look of shock overcame Roy's face, his defensiveness fading away.

"You notice me doing that?" Felicity smiled.

"Yeah, of course. It's kind of hard to miss."

"Oh my god! You're okay!" Thea shouted behind Roy as she ran down the hall towards them. Roy stepped aside and back into bodyguard mode, giving Thea room to hug Felicity. "You scared me! I watched the whole thing from your bedroom window. I'm sorry Ollie was such an ass, being rough with you like that. I'll be sure to give him a swift kick in the ass next time I see him." Felicity pulled back.

"It's fine Thea, no need for any ass kicking." Thea sighed but didn't argue. She turned towards Roy.

"Are you okay?" Roy nodded, expression grim.

"Of course, why wouldn't I be?" Thea threw a exasperated look Felicity's way.

"Because," Thea drawled, linking arms with Roy and Felicity, steering them back to Felicity's room. "Felicity disappeared. Forget the fact you're supposed to be guarding her, she's your friend. You had to be a little freaked out."

"Oh, we're all friends now, are we?" Roy asked eyebrow raised. Thea scoffed.

"Of course. We've been through enough crazy situations in the past few days, I think our bond is a little unbreakable."

"And weren't you the one who was just telling me you were worried about my safety and not your job if something happened to me?" Felicity added.

"Be quiet Felicity, I don't want Thea to know about my softhearted nature." Roy faked his anger. Thea laughed between the two of them.

"I always knew you were a softie Roy, I just needed Felicity's help to bring it out of you." She tilted her head towards Felicity. "He used to never smile. I would try so hard and he would only crack at the corners." She stage whispered to her friend.

"I was on duty Thea, what did you expect?" Thea leaned into him.

"I was hoping you'd maybe make an exception for me." She set her chin on his shoulder. "C'mon, where's your handsome smile?" She pouted. Roy laughed at her expression and Thea's face broke into a grin. "There it is!" She let go of their arms to throw her hands in the air. She skipped forward a few steps and opened the door to Felicity's room. She smiled one last time and slipped inside. Roy kept staring at the doorway, a stupid grin on his face.

"You're drooling a little, lover boy." Felicity teased.

"Shut up," Roy breathed, smile still on his face. Felicity left him in the hall and at his post and found Thea chatting with Raisa in her room.

"Hi Raisa!" Felicity said brightly. A look of relief washed over the older woman's face as she walked quickly over to Felicity and pulled her into a hug.

"Thank goodness you are okay Miss. Felicity." Felicity tucked some hair behind her ear shyly.

"I made a stupid mistake. I thought there was someone in the yard."

"And you went outside?" Thea asked in disbelief. "What if it had been a Triad member?" She whispered the last part, like it was too dangerous to say out loud. Felicity shrugged.

"I don't know, I thought it was someone who needed help." Raisa smiled softly at Felicity's statement and gently guided her to the vanity and sat her down.

"You have a big heart Miss. Felicity. You only thought of the person who might have been in trouble. You did not think of your own safety. It can be dangerous to do that, care too much. But you have a big heart and that is good." Felicity thought softly for a moment.

"My mother used to tell me that I came to trust people too easily. That one day I would regret it. One day I would trust someone and it would come back to haunt me." Thea waved her hand in front of her, as if to brush away Felicity's words.

"You're fine, the only people you need to trust now are the people in this house. And we're already all family. Bratva before blood." Raisa nodded along.

"Да, мы семья."[Yes, we are a family] She said kindly, patting Felicity's shoulder. Thea perched herself on the edge of Felicity's bed.

"So, are we going to ready or what? We have Raisa to help with everything." Thea reached down and grabbed the basket of nail polish. "Pick your poison, Felicity. We have every colour you could dream of." Felicity laughed.

 

\---

 

While Felicity was carefully painting her piggies gold, Thea painting hers red, and Raisa was preparing the face masks, there was a knock at the door. Thea squealed and hobbled to the door. She threw it open and squealed a little more, launching herself at the person on the other side.

"Jesus, Thea, way to break my eardrums." Thea pulled back and dragged a blonde haired woman into the room.

"Miss. Sara," Raisa said, rounding the bed to hug the young woman. "It is good to see you again."

"You too Raisa, you're looking well." The woman looked over to the vanity where Felicity was seated. "You must be the new addition to the house." Felicity's stood and hobbled over on the heels of her feet to ensure her wet nails weren't smudged.

"I'm Felicity Smoak." She said, extending a hand.

"Sara Lance." The woman answered, shaking Felicity's hand.

"Lance..." Felicity said slowly. "That name rings a bell." She backed up carefully and dropped onto the vanity chair.

"It makes sense if it is. My father is a detective in the SCPD, my mother is a professor at Central City University and my sister's a lawyer." Thea nodded, sitting beside Sara on the bed.

"Decorated police officer, award winning biologist and big shot lawyer, Sara's got a killer family."

"Actually, I'm the only killer in the family. The family disappointment." Sara said calmly, pulling her knees to her chest. Thea wrapped an arm around her.

"A disappointment to them but the accomplishment of this family. Bratva before blood, Sara. We're your family now."

"Besides," Felicity jumped in. "Nobody here cares if you've killed someone, you had reasons and orders. Plus, I'm a hundred percent positive you're not the only person in the room who's killed someone."

"Well I haven't killed anyone." Thea said.

"I wasn't talking about you, or Raisa." Felicity left the unsaid sentence in the air. Thea's mouth fell open but she shut it quickly.

"Whatever. No more talk of killing and Bratva business, I want to start looking sexy." Thea stood and walked over to her closet with Sara in tow. "I can't wait to get Felicity all dressed up!"

"Wait, why is it so important you get me all fancy?" Felicity asked.

"Because," Thea said, exasperated. "As your new friend I have also taken on the job of your wing woman. I want those Bratva men to be begging to have you dance with them." Felicity rolled her eyes.

"Fine, you want to try and set me up, go ahead. Do you have anyone in mind?" Thea bit her lip to keep herself from answering Felicity's question. "Thea..."

"I think you and my brother would look really cute together!" Thea blurted out. Felicity's mouth dropped open.

"Me...and Mr. Queen? What makes you think we would work?"

"He apparently listens to you, you don't take any of his shit and I always find broody jerks falling for cute little rays of sunshine very adorable."

"You seriously think the two of us would work?" Felicity asked doubtfully.

"Yeah, totally. I want him to fall at your feet." Felicity squirmed a bit at the thought of a Bratva Captain kneeling at her feet.

"I need to borrow a dress, I left all my ballgowns at home." Sara interjected into the conversation, seeing Felicity's uncomfortableness. 

"I knew you'd say that, come further into the depths of my closet and see the fantastic dress I got you." Thea and Sara disappeared and Raisa quietly stepped into the bathroom to grab some ointments. Felicity spun around to face the mirror and began to brush her hair.

 _The thought of Oliver kneeling before me seems kind of nice, seeing as he's been an ass lately. However I would feel weird having that kind of power over such a ruthless member of the Bratva. I'm happy Sara helped me shut down that conversation. I feel like I know her name from somewhere. I must have heard the name Lance before because it belongs to a detective in Starling._ Felicity sighed to herself.

_I can't shake this feeling that I know that name from somewhere. The name Lance seems so familiar…_

 

**Next!**

-The Party!

-Three new, unexpected/uninvited guests

-Even more ~~jealous~~ Oliver oops I mean, "protective"

-Felicity meets Moira (dramatic music plays)


	6. Bad Reputation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so, still being new to AO3, I don't know how to insert pictures. Oh well. I have a link to the dresses (even though Tumblr distorted them I'm still using the link)
> 
> http://pangirl-fangirl.tumblr.com/post/116046814381/safe-and-sound-chapter-six-dresses
> 
> Sorry for the inconvenience!  
> Hugs!  
> -Addie

**"Bad Reputation"**

 

I don't give a damn 'bout my reputation  
You're living in the past, it's a new generation  
A girl can do what she wants to do and that's what I'm gonna do

An' I don't give a damn 'bout my bad reputation  
Oh no, not me

An' I don't give a damn 'bout my reputation  
Never said I wanted to improve my station  
An' I'm only doin' good when I'm havin' fun  
An' I don't have to please no one

An' I don't give a damn 'bout my bad reputation  
Oh no, not me, oh no, not me

I don't give a damn 'bout my reputation  
I've never been afraid of any deviation  
An' I don't really care if you think I'm strange   
I ain't gonna change

An' I'm never gonna care 'bout my bad reputation  
Oh no, not me, oh no, not me  
Pedal, boys!

An' I don't give a damn 'bout my reputation  
The world's in trouble, there's no communication  
An' everyone can say what they wanna to say  
It never gets better, anyway

So why should I care about a bad reputation anyway?  
Oh no, not me, oh no, not me

I don't give a damn 'bout my bad reputation  
You're living in the past, it's a new generation  
An' I only feel good when I got no pain  
An' that's how I'm gonna stay

An' I don't give a damn 'bout my bad reputation  
Oh no, not me, oh no, not me  
Not me, not me

  
  


Felicity watched Sara in the mirror as she put her diamond earrings on. Sara was zipping up the front of her long black dress. The gold zipper started at the middle of her breasts and went all the way up to the top of her neck. The sleeves ended at the tops of her shoulders and there was a gold bird emblem at the top of her neck. Sara began pulling her hair into a messy bun when she noticed Felicity watching.

"Great dress right?"

"It looks fantastic on you." Felicity smiled at her companion.

"Don't let my girlfriend hear you, she gets jealous very easily." Sara said as she finished her bun by shoving two chopsticks through it.

"Is she back in Tibet?" Felicity asked, slipping on her matching white diamond necklace. Sara nodded.

"I was visiting her home. I'm pretty sure her father likes me, except for the fact I'm a dating his daughter. I think that's the only bone he has to pick with me." Felicity smiled softly.

"Who cares about the parents? As long as she loves you, I think you're good." Sara smiled.

"I like you." She stated. She walked over to stand behind Felicity. She gathered up her hair without asking and began to twist it around the curling iron. "Oliver says you're stubborn." Felicity scoffed at the statement, rolling her eyes.

"That's ironic, coming from him." Sara laughed.

"Touché. He can be a pain in the ass sometimes, but deep down, he's got a big soft spot for his family."

"You know him that well?"

"Yup," She said, looking at Felicity in the mirror. "I know him inside and out. Or rather he knows me outside and in." Sara smiled widely.

"Ew, gross, Sara, that's my brother you're talking about. I don't need to be reminded that there was a point in time when you were screwing him." Thea said, emerging from the bathroom, short, tight, sparkling red dress strapped to her body. She walked past them, showcasing her bare back.

"On the subject of your brother, do you really think you can enter a ballroom full of men, Bratva men, with a dress like that and not get a scolding from him?" Sara asked, eyebrow raised. Thea rolled her eyes.

"If I can convince Ollie to let Felicity and I go to the mall, I can convince him that my dress is the best in the room." Thea stuck in her black studs. "I doubt I have to worry about my brother. Now come on," Thea shook her hair out, fluffing it up. "We have a party to get to." Thea sauntered over to the door and flung it open, seeing Roy standing guard on the other side. He went slack jawed at the sight of the three women.

"You don't look too bad yourself, handsome." Thea said with a wink. The girls made their way down the hall as Roy picked his jaw up off the floor and followed them. The women descended the staircase and found Oliver at the bottom with Tommy.

"I can't say no to him, it's his company-" Tommy broke off, seeing the women over Oliver's shoulder. "Good evening ladies, you all look wonderful." Tommy said, his earlier solemn expression changing to a smirk. Oliver turned and ended up looking straight at Felicity. His face went blank, his previous expression disappearing as his eyes moved over Felicity erratically, like he was taking in too much information at once. Felicity watched as Oliver's jaw tightened and as he began to rub his thumb and forefinger together. She felt her face get hot at the hungry expression on his face and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, averting her eyes.

"Thank you Tommy," Thea said, going up on her toes to kiss his cheek. "Your flattery is always appreciated." Tommy reached out past Thea and grabbed one of Sara and Felicity's hands in each of his and kiss both of their knuckles in turn. Sara threw Felicity an unimpressed glance while Oliver sharply turned his head away from the group.

"Watch yourself Merlyn, I have a girlfriend who would love to kick your ass if she saw you anywhere near me."

"Oh really? Why is that?"

"Your reputation spans the globe Tommy, you get around. She knows exactly who you are." Sara laughed. "I think she's afraid you'll try something on me." Tommy laughed.

"Doesn't she know that you are very capable of kicking my ass?"

"Of course, but she still worries." Sara patted Tommy's shoulder and breezed past him with an arm linked with Thea into the ballroom. Felicity looked at Tommy.

"Is everything okay?" "Yeah," Tommy said, nodding.

"Of course."

"Really?" Felicity raised an eyebrow. "Because when we first came down you looked like someone pissed in your cornflakes."

"It's nothing." He said nonchalantly.

"Tommy..." Felicity gave him a warning look. He sighed.

"My fathers here."

Oh.

 _Oh_.

Malcolm Merlyn, ruthless business man and partner with the Bratva, was here at the mansion. Felicity heard the whispers about how Malcolm became involved in the Bratva, how his wife had been murdered by a Triad member in the Glades. No one knew why that Triad member had chosen to kill a random woman on the street, or whether her murder was random. Malcolm had rubbed the right elbows and got quite a reputation behind him and then suddenly Malcolm Merlyn was the most feared, non-Bratva man in the city. Felicity had also heard about Malcolm's shitty relationship with his son. Apparently after his wife's murder, he completely shut out his son rather than helping him through the tough time. Felicity reached out and grabbed Tommy's hand. He squeezed it thankfully, a silent consoling conversation going on between the two of them.

"Well," Tommy said, releasing her hand. "I should get in there and start my drinking for the night. Hell knows I'll need it." Tommy turned and left. Felicity turned to Oliver.

"Good evening Oliver," She said with confidence, knowing no one was around to hear her call him by his first name.

"Evening Felicity." Felicity tilted her head at his chipped tone.

"Are you okay?" She stepped forward, a kind, reassuring hand reaching out for his arm.

"I'm fine." He said, stepping back. "I should head in, and you should too, being the guest of honour." Oliver turned, leaving Felicity alone in the hall, hand floating in the air.

"Okay," She said quietly. She clasped her hands in front of her and followed after Oliver. He was standing in the doorway to the ballroom, accepting a glass of vodka from Diggle.

"What's this for?" He asked, taking the glass. "The night just started, I doubt I need this already." Digg's expression was grim.

"Trust me, you'll need it. Your mother's here," Oliver opened his mouth to protest but Digg pressed on. "And she brought three guests home from her vacation. The Kynazev brothers." The Kynazev brothers, nephews of Anatoly Kynazev, leader of the Bratva. Felicity watched Oliver stiffen, fingers curling around his drink.

"And here they come now." Felicity looked past Oliver and saw a blonde haired woman in a blue dress with three tall, black haired men following her, approaching them. Oliver faced away from the advancing group, downing his drink before his eyes set on Felicity beside him. If it was any other person, Felicity would have laughed at the comical widening of his eyes.

"You can't be here right now." Felicity gave him an 'excuse me?' look.

"I have to meet your mother eventually Oliver. I can only avoid her for so long." Oliver shook his head grumbling to himself.

"You can meet her later." Oliver argued. "These brothers are...a handful. I'm just worried and I think it would be in your best interest if you weren't around when-"

"When the Kynazev brothers come over to talk to you? Relax Oliver, I've met them before, I can handle myself."

"Oliver," Moira Queen said sweetly. "How are you?" Oliver fixed a tight smile on his face and turned slowly back to the group.

"I'm alright mother, how was your trip?" He asked, kissing her cheek and glaring at the men behind her as he did.

"It was wonderful. I believe you remember the Kynazev boys?"

"Of course. Though they're not really boys anymore." Felicity watched, with an eye roll, as he shook their hands tightly, doing the whole _'I'm-bigger-and-stronger-I'm-the-alpha_ ' routine.

"You're right Oliver, we're hardly boys." One of them said with a sly smile.

"Flissy!" Another said, stepping towards her. Felicity cringed at the nickname. "It's been awhile, how are you? We were so devastated to hear about your father." Felicity shook his hand, suppressing an eye roll as he kissed her knuckles.

Dominic. The youngest of the brothers and the designated party boy. He practically invented the phrase 'Live while we're young'. He had a higher track record with women then Tommy and Oliver's party days combined. Though he didn't want to be part of the Bratva and had no interest in it's politics, Dominic was still a loyal member and if Felicity remembered correctly, a little trigger happy in "interrogation sessions". Dominic was the leanest of the three but could still pack a punch. Felicity smiled politely and moved to the next brother. This brother choose a hug rather than a handshake.

Dimitri. The oldest of the brothers and definitely the most mature. He was the closest out of the three of them to the top position of the Bratva and he took that chance of running the Bratva very seriously. That didn't however mean that Dimitri didn't know how to have fun. He owned a string of clubs across the world (which Dominic was sure to frequent) called Кровавый цветок or The Bloody Flower in English and he had a lot of fun one-on-one sessions whenever he got the chance. He was the tallest and largest of the brothers and had a scowl to make the toughest men wet themselves and a smile to melt your heart. Though he still wasn't the kind of person you wanted to bring home to your parents, he was nice and most likely to carry your drunk ass home rather than try and have sex with your drunk ass.

"I'm so sorry about your father Felicity. I'm here if you need anything Darling." Dimitri whispered into her ear before pulling back from the hug. Felicity blinked, clearing her glassy eyes. She knew Dimitri's words were genuine and he was one of the brothers to call her when her father had died. The last brother stepped forward, holding Felicity's hands and placing a tender kiss on her forehead.

Nikolai. The middle child and Bratva heartthrob. He didn't walk, he sauntered and he was always granted to have a string of broken hearts trailing behind him. He was built and tall and quite enjoyed using Felicity's head as an armrest whenever he got the chance. He and Dimitri were business partners at the club and though he didn't take his potential Bratva position too seriously, he was far more involved than Dominic. Nikolai liked to be in the field, to help the Bratva get who or what they needed at any cost. He was an excellent strategist and skilled both in battle and in bed. Felicity could attest to that, for all of them. Though Nikolai had charm like Tommy but times a thousand, he was kind of gooey on the inside and was protective when he needed to be.

"I'm sorry about your father моя маленькая солнце [my little sunshine]." He squeezed her hands tightly before stepping back.

"I'm not little anymore Nikki, besides, I'm older than Dom and you're only two years older than I am."

"So you speak Russian, Felicity?" Moira remarked, joining in the conversation.

"Not really. I know how to say a few phrases because my mother wanted me to be to be polite and formal but besides that no, I don't speak Russian." That was a lie. Felicity could speak perfect Russian, as while as French, Spanish, German, Chinese and she was working on Arabic in her spare time. Felicity had realized over the years that if people thought she couldn't understand them, they were more likely to freely talk back and forth while she was in the room. This gave Felicity information with ever having to break into people's bank accounts or secure computer files. Her father often used not only her computer talents but her lie about not understanding to obtain information from people while they were staying at the house. Felicity and her father were quite the team.

"You don't speak Russian? Хорошо, хорошо. [Good, good.]" Moira said, nodding absentmindedly. She turned to Oliver. "Хорошо знать, что я могу говорить с моей семьей с ней в комнате без ее понимания [Good to know I can speak to my family with her in the room without her understanding]." She turned her attention back to Felicity. "It's very nice to meet you dear. I wish you were staying with us under better circumstances."

"I wish the same thing." She smiled as sweetly as she could. She was getting the impression Moira Queen was no bark and all bite. The quiet, scheming type to stab you in the front if you ever crossed her.

"So why are the three of you here?" Oliver asked, somewhat on the cold side.

"We ran into your mother at the airport in England when she was making her connecting flight. We were going home after taking care of some business. She mentioned that you had Felicity staying here and she asked us to come to your party."

"Are you sure you didn't invite yourselves?" Felicity asked slyly.

"Felicity," Nikolai chastised playfully. "You wound us." He placed a hand over his heart in fake hurt.

"Maybe we did invite ourselves. Can you blame us? We all really wanted to see you." Dimitri smiled. "Do me the pleasure of a dance?" He asked, offering his elbow.

"Of course." She smiled back, hand curling around the crook of her elbow. Dimitri guided her to the middle of the dance floor, where some of the other guests were waltzing.

"So," Dimitri said after a minute or so of silence. "You don't speak Russian?" He said jokingly, knowing full well that she could speak the language.

"Oh shut up." She said , smacking his shoulder lightly. "You know it's easy for me to understand how well someone likes me if they think I can't speak a language they know."

"Or it's a good way for you to eavesdrop and collect information."

"That too." Dimitri laughed with her and spun her out and back in, her back to his chest.

"So," Dimitri whispered, nibbling on her ear. "What do you say about us getting out of here and finding a room-" He was cut off when someone tapped his shoulder. The pair turned and met Slade Wilson.

"Mind if I cut in?" He asked, holding a hand out to Felicity. Felicity took it, knowing it was impolite to refuse a Bratva Captain a dance. Dimitri snuck a quick kiss to Felicity's head before nodding at Mr. Wilson and walking away. Mr. Wilson pulled Felicity into the proper position and began to move her across the floor.

"You surprise me Mr. Wilson. You don't strike me as the dancing type." "

Please Miss. Smoak, call me Slade and my wife felt it was mandatory that I learn. She wanted me to be in peak fighting condition and said I was too heavy on my feet. She believed dancing made you quicker. And my wife thought it was an endearing quality to have. I improved my skills to impress her, to make her proud."

"That's very sweet of you." Felicity held back the laugh at calling a Bratva Captain sweet. "Well is she happy? Your wife?" She asked, curiously. "With the man you've become? Is she proud?"

"She's dead." He said calmly.

"I-I am so sorry-I didn't know-"

"It's alright Miss. Smoak. It was a terrible accident what happened. I hope to kill however was responsible."

"Do you think you'll get the chance?"

"I believe I will. Very soon actually, if the fates are kind to me." He said simply.

"I wish you the best of luck then. If finding and killing your wife's killer brings you peace, I hope you succeed."

"Thank you Miss. Smoak. I heard you were kind hearted. It's nice to know that it's true. My wife's murderer will face justice. I wish to make him suffer." A throat cleared behind Felicity and she turned out of Slade's hold to face the person.

Malcolm Merlyn.

"May I cut in?"

"Of course." Slade handed Felicity off to Malcolm and headed towards the bar. Malcolm wrapped a hand around her back and loosely held her hand.

"I've heard a lot about you Miss. Smoak."

"Is that so?"

"Yes," He answered, moving them across the floor. "Tommy speaks very highly of you."

"How strange." Felicity said rather coldly, feeling an unknown sense of anger in her chest at the man who had practically abandoned Tommy as a child. "I was unaware you and Tommy were on speaking terms."

"I have a feeling the anger you are directing towards me is because of the things that you've heard about me?"

"What things are you referring to Mr. Merlyn? How you neglected your son? How you let your rage fuel your everyday fire? How you weaselled your way into the Bratva to benefit yourself? Which of these should I feel angry about?"

"I can understand why you're hostile Miss. Smoak, however you should show me the same curtesy as you did to Mr. Wilson. You should give me your best wishes on my mission to end the Triad. We have the same mission. We are both Bratva."

"Please excuse me if I don't share the same opinion. I believe you aren't a proper member of the Bratva."

"Actually Miss. Smoak, I've contributed more to it than you have. I've helped with shipments and travel and alliances. You've simply been born into the Bratva. You're not even Russian. You were born on American soil and I hear that you don't speak Russian. The phrase Bratva before Blood is often used among us. The actions and contributions you provide to the Bratva guarantees your position not the blood in your veins. You have, in no way, helped the Bratva." The hand on her back pulled her closer, rather harshly. "Your blood means nothing." Malcolm practically spat. Felicity tried not to flinch.

"I think there are several people here who would disagree with you." Felicity countered.

"Like who? The people housing you for the next little while? Mr. Queen perhaps? I was wondering why he agreed to let you stay here. Maybe he gets something in return? Maybe some one on one time with you?" Felicity was about to slap Malcolm at that accusation but a sudden gathering of people by the bar drew their attention. Felicity saw Thea in the crowd and became worried about her friends.

"If you'll excuse me Mr. Merlyn, I need to check on my friends." With that Felicity pushed off Malcolm and rushed off the dance floor, heading straight into the commotion. The crowd was dissipating, whatever had attracted them had obviously ended and they seemed to have lost interest.

"I'm fine Thea," Felicity could hear Oliver say. "Stop fussing over nothing." Felicity came up to the bar and stood with Roy, Tommy, Sara and Digg as Thea inspected Oliver's hand.

"What happened?" Felicity asked, eyes flicking across the group.

"Ollie broke his glass." Sara provided. Thea scoffed, dropping Oliver's hand, satisfied that it was to her liking.

"Oliver squeezed his glass until it broke."

"You crushed your glass in your hand? Why?" Oliver shook his head as he accepted a rag from the bartender and wiped the excess vodka from his fingers.

"Let's just say I saw something that made me extremely agitated and I broke the glass before I knew what I was doing." Sara rolled her eyes and turned from the group.

"I was chatting up a particularly good looking boy before this happened so I'll be over here." Sara left and Diggle shook his head at Oliver.

"Twenty minutes into this party and I already need another drink." Diggle headed to the other end of the bar, obviously exasperated with Oliver's behaviour. Tommy looked past Digg's retreating form and saw a man approaching them.

"Hey Roy, look out."

"Oh god, not again." Roy groaned. Felicity raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

"All night, so far at least, members have been approaching me about job opportunities. They obviously haven't passed the message around that I'm not looking to switch bosses. I mean, the Captain of the American branch of the Bratva is my boss. I'm as high as I can get. They can't offer me anything I want. I have great co-workers and friends and superiors here. I'm not leaving but none of them seem to get that." Thea laughed at Roy's speech.

"We get it, you love us, stop it with the compliments." Thea looked over Roy's shoulder at the approaching member and looked at Roy. "Dance with me."

"What?"

"Dance with me." She stated more clearly. "Anyone with manners and proper etiquette won't bother a man when he's dancing with a beautiful lady. Especially if that lady is the sister of the owner of the house. C'mon," She grabbed Roy's arm. "Show me your moves Abercrombie." She dragged him off the dance floor and Felicity looked behind her to see the member stop in his tracks and move off.

"I saw you dancing with my dad. Thoughts?" Tommy asked.

"Your father is a pretentious ass." Felicity said sourly.

"Yeah, I could have told you that." A red haired woman moved to stand behind Tommy. She tapped him on the shoulder. Tommy turned.

"Hi, I was wondering if you'd do me the honour of a dance?" Tommy offered the woman his arm.

"How could I possibly say no to someone as beautiful as you?" Tommy escorted the redhead away from the two remaining members of the group. Felicity looked back at Oliver and placed a reassuring hand on his bicep.

"Are you okay?"

"Of course. Thea already checked, no cuts, I'm fine." Felicity shook her head, and moved to lean against the bar beside him.

"I meant about what you saw, whatever that was. Are you okay now? All cooled off?"

"Truthfully? Yes, I'm cooled down now but just thinking about what I saw on the dance floor makes me want to punch the person in the face."

"Did someone do something to anger you, which made you go all hulk on your glass?"

"Да Малькольм не отрывая руки при себе [Yeah Malcolm wasn't keeping his hands to himself.]" Felicity stilled the words, realizing that Oliver had been watching her exchange with Malcolm.

"What?" She asked, confused as to why Malcolm dancing with her caused such a reaction from Oliver.

"Sorry," He waved a hand. "It doesn't matter." _Oh, right. I'm not supposed to know Russian._

"You know, I'm surprised that women aren't flocking to you, looking for a chance to dance with a Bratva Kapitan." She mocked, nudging his shoulder playfully. Oliver scoffed, dropping the vodka soaked rag on the bar.

"I made sure that every women was aware that I don't dance."

"So, what? Do you just sit around talking and drinking?" Oliver gave her a look. "Wow, seriously? You must be the life of the party."

"My job is to do business, not have fun."

"Then why are you spending your time talking to me? Oh, that's right, I am your job." Oliver frowned at her tone.

"I'm helping your mother keep you safe." He said, turning to lean against the bar so he could face her. "If you wish to leave and take your chances on your own, be my guest." Felicity sighed.

"You're right, I'm sorry. I almost died while living here but I'm sure I'd be dead tomorrow if I left this house, left your care-I mean, your protection not your care, like you're not the one tending to my every need-and by need I mean food and stuff, not other kinds of...needs... I'm going to shut up now." Oliver chuckled slightly and Felicity smiled despite herself.

"Sorry, I have no brain to mouth filter. Anything that comes to mind, which has a tendency to be inappropriate, sometimes just comes out."

"It's cute." Oliver said before he could stop himself. Felicity looked at him rather shocked before bursting into laughter.

"I'm sorry," She apologized for laughing. "But a Bratva Captain using the word 'cute' seems kind of ridiculous."

"And why is that?" Oliver asked, leaning towards her.

"Well, Captains are meant to be harsh and cold, unforgiving and occasionally cruel. They rule with an iron fist. 'Cute' doesn't seem like the kind of word that would be in their vocabulary." Felicity looked up at Oliver as he took a step closer to her, arm resting on the bar beside hers.

"Cold and cruel, huh?" Felicity swallowed hard.

"Yeah, from what I've seen and the things I've heard and-and-" Felicity was having trouble focusing as Oliver stared at her, his fingers absentmindedly playing with the bracelet around her wrist. "And I'm pretty sure we've been over this already."

"Have we?" Oliver teased.

"Yes, my second day here, in your office." Oliver nodded.

"Of course, I remember, we went over my rules." Felicity's cheeks flushed, eyes closing, at the memory of Oliver leaning over her, holding her wrist and effectively caging her against his desk. She would be lying if she said she hadn't thought about him pining her to that desk, using his mouth more to her liking. She let the smallest of whimpers escape past her lips at the thought. She opened her eyes when Oliver took a sharp intake of breath, something flashing across his face. She saw him lean in a millimetre before he caught himself. He pulled back, hand leaving her wrist.

"Контролируйте себя Оливера [Control yourself Oliver]" He scolded himself. Felicity decided to push him.

"Why are you speaking Russian Oliver? Got something to hide from me?"

"We all have our secrets Felicity."

"Well, anything you've put on any piece of technology, isn't a secret to me. That is, if I tried to search your computer and stuff, I'd find out everything about you."

"I heard you were good with computers." Felicity nodded, excited.

"I'm pretty good with my fingers." Felicity let her words register before face palming. "I meant I'm fast at typing and I'm a computer genius." Oliver was going to make a comment when a brown haired man stepped into their view.

"I'm sorry for interrupting but may I steal the guest of honour away for a dance?" The man extended a hand to Felicity.

"Actually she-" Oliver started.

"Would love to." Felicity finished, slipping her hand into the mans. As he began to lead her to the dance floor, Felicity turned back to Oliver. "You ever try and speak for me again, I'll stab you in the face." She said sweetly. Oliver scowled as he watched her being taken to the dance floor by yet another man. Felicity began to dance with the man and smiled at his handsome face. He had very dark brown hair and eyes with an angular face. He had a bright smile which never fell from his face.

"So, I assume you know my name, what's yours?" Felicity asked.

"I do know your name Miss. Smoak. My name is Maxim Balashov." Felicity tilted her head.

"That name sounds familiar." She scrunched up her nose in concentration. "I don't know where I've heard it before."

"I've never met you or your family before so I have no idea where you might have heard it. Although I will say after meeting you, I regret not doing it sooner." Felicity laughed at his flirting.

"You just met me! I don't think you could make an assumption about me after only a minute or so."

"I've heard a lot of wonderful things about you. I hear you're excellent with computers. Is that a hobby or are you planning on pursuing it as a career?" Felicity shrugged.

"I'm sure the Bratva could use as many hackers as possible. People tend to keep a lot of their information on technology. I would be a great asset."

"Yes you would," Maxim agreed. "Do you have any other hobbies or hidden talents?"

"I'm a great poker and Blackjack player..." A sudden thought hit Felicity.

Poker.

That's where I've heard the name Maxim Balashov before. Father used to play poker with him.

_("Why is father in such a bad mood?" Felicity whispered to her mother across the table. Her mother rolled her eyes._

_"_ _He lost a card game."_

_"Lost?" Her father shouted. "I did not loose that game, Balashov cheated. He looks like a sweet little eighty year old but he's actually a viscous old bastard who steals all your chips!" Felicity laughed at her fathers over the top anger at a simple poker game._

_"It's fine father! I'm sure you'll get him next time!"_

_"_ _I will if I can use you to help me." Donna shook her head._

_"No,"_

_"But-" Felicity's father started._

_"No." Donna interjected. "I have told you a thousand times you're not using our daughter to help you cheat at your silly card games."_

_"Fine." But her father sent her a wink her way, letting her know that he wasn't going to listen to his wife. Felicity smiled brightly before going back to eating her peas.)_

"Everything okay?"

"Yes, of course." Felicity shook her head. "Just lost in thought."

"I hear you're very smart, you must drift off in thought quite often. Always thinking, always figuring things out."

"You've heard a lot about me. Who's telling you all these things?"

"I pick up things here and there. People talk." Felicity nodded, fingers brushing against the hair at the back of Maxim's neck. She felt something pasty on her fingertips. She looked at her fingers over Maxim's shoulder and saw them coated in brown, as if she had dipped her fingers in paint.

"That reminds me," Maxim's voice brought Felicity back to focus on him. "I wanted to say how sorry I am."

"About what?"

"The attempt on your life the other night. I find it's horrible that a Bratva Captain can't even protect people when they are in his own home. He let that crazy Triad member into his home and look what happened. It's a damn shame he can't do his job properly. I want you to know that the Balashlov house is always open if you wish for better security and safety." Felicity smiled as best as she could.

"Thank you Mr. Balashov." She stepped back and out of his hold. "I'm sorry but I promised I would check in with my bodyguard every hour or so. If you'll excuse me." Felicity turned and rushed away from Maxim, clutching her brown stained hand close to her chest. She frantically searched the crowd until she set her eyes on Oliver. She pushed past and through people until she came up beside the men he was talking to. She interrupted them immediately.

"I'm sorry to interrupt gentlemen but I need to talk to Mr. Queen for a moment."

"But of course my dear!" One of the men said and Felicity didn't even bother to send him a smile or nod before Oliver reached out and guided her towards the exit. Once they made it out the doors Oliver, using the hand he had placed on her back, steered her down a vacant hallway. Felicity leaned back against the wall, trying to calm herself down.

"Felicity," Oliver rubbed a soothing hand up and down her arm. "What's wrong?"

"The man I was dancing with, he's not who he says he is."

"Who did he say he was?"

"Maxim Balashov. But I know for a fact that Maxim Balashov is an eighty year old man who used to play poker with my father. This man was in his twenties and he is most definitely NOT a brunette." Felicity showed Oliver her stained fingers. "He was wearing hair dye, and not the good kind either if it came this easily. I also doubt that he had to dye his hair because he was getting grey." Felicity sighed shakily. "That's not the worst part. How many people did you tell about the attempt on my life?"

"No one. Only the members of this household know. Why?"

" _He_ knew. This man told me he was sorry about what happened. That he couldn't believe a Bratva Captain let this happen in his own home. How could he have known? Somebody must have told him."

"Come with me." Oliver took her arm and lead her back towards the ballroom. "I want you to point him out to me." They rounded a corner and entered the crowded foyer when Felicity spotted him by the door.

"Right there!" Felicity grabbed Oliver's arm in alarm. "By the front door!" Oliver looked up and met the man's gaze. He smiled widely at the two of them and gave a mock salute before dashing out the doors. Oliver ran after him, collecting several guards on his way out. Felicity followed right behind them.

"Stop him!" Oliver yelled as the man pushed through some people on the front steps. The guards brought out their guns and people scattered. Felicity stopped in the doorway and watched as the man hopped on a motorcycle, barely getting his helmet on, before he was speeding off. "Follow him! Get him back here!" Oliver ordered, a few guards getting on bikes of their own. Felicity began to walk down the front steps when she began to shake.

 _Oh no, not again. Not now_. Felicity placed her hand on the stone railing to steady herself but it did nothing to help. She could no longer stand on her shaking legs and sat down on the steps. Her breathing became difficult as her vision went black around the edges.

"Oliver." Felicity said, getting his attention. He turned to see her sitting on the step, one hand on her chest, the other gripping the step. He rushed up the steps to kneel in front of her.

"Felicity? What is it? What's wrong?" Felicity shook her head, trying to catch her breath.

"Ollie?" Thea, Tommy, Roy, Sara and Diggle all walked up to stand in the doorway. "What's going on?" "

I'll explain later. Digg, Sara, I want the two of you on crowd control. Assure them that everything is fine and keep them out of the foyer and away from the front door. Tommy, go back into the ballroom and control the crowd from there. Keep the party going. Roy, close the door behind them and guard it. Don't let anyone come outside until I tell you to. Thea, come here." They all split off to do their jobs, Roy closing the front door and standing outside. Thea hurried down the steps and knelt in front of Felicity with Oliver.

"Felicity? Are you okay?" She still refused to speak, scrunching her eyes closed.

"Felicity please." Oliver said. "I can only help you if you tell me what's wrong." _God, I really hoped they wouldn't have found out this way._

"I suffer from panic attacks. I'm kind of having one right now."

"How can we help?" Thea asked immediately.

"I have medication in my bedside table upstairs. It usually helps." Oliver looked at Thea.

"On it." She stood and ran up the steps and inside. Oliver looked back at Felicity.

"What can I do?"

"Try and calm me down I guess." Felicity suggested.

"How do I do that?"

"Well," Felicity took a deep breath. "I'm probably panicking because of the man who was just here and because he's obvious not Bratva and he somehow got in the house. He also knew stuff he shouldn't have and-and-"

"Hey," Oliver said softly, cutting her off. "It's okay."

"I'm panicking because I'm scared. Because I don't feel safe. I feel like anyone could attack me, anyone could get to me, anyone could kill me. I'm so afraid that someone will kill me Oliver-" Felicity whimpered.

"Hey, I'm right here." Oliver said, cutting her short again, hands cupping her face. "No one is going to hurt you. Not while I'm around." Felicity reached up and held onto Oliver's wrists. "I promise that I'll always be around to protect you Felicity, to keep you safe. If you ever don't feel safe, come find me. I promise that I'll make you feel safe again. Don't worry, everything will be fine." Felicity leaned into his touch.

"That's working. That's good."

"What's working Felicity?"

"Human contact. It helps ground me."

"Alright then," Oliver moved one of his hands to the back of her neck and drew her towards him. He sat up against the railing and tucked Felicity into him, curling her into a ball against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and tucked her head under his chin.

"Follow the beating of my heart."

"It's beating kind of fast." Felicity remarked. Oliver huffed.

"Fine, then follow my breathing. When I breathe, you breathe, got it?" Felicity nodded and Oliver slowed his breathing. After a few seconds, Felicity's shaking started to subside. Thea came back moments later with the pill bottle. Noticing their position, she walked quietly down the steps.

"Is she okay?"

"I think so. She's not shaking as much."

"I can see that." Thea gestured to Felicity. "You wanna explain your current position?"

"She said human contact helped calm her."

"Ah," Thea said, not quite believing him. "And was she the one to tell you this or did you take it upon yourself to hold her?"

"Quit talking about me like I'm not here." Felicity said. Thea laughed a little then sat on her knees beside the pair.

"Do you still need these?" She shook the bottle. "Or are you good?"

"I think-I think I'm good." Felicity said surprised. "That's the first time I haven't needed the pills." Thea extended a hand, which Felicity took, using it to help her stand. Oliver stood beside her and shrugged his suit jacket off, draping it over her shoulders. They made their way back inside, happy to find that the party had continued without too much disruption. The only people in the foyer were Sara, Diggle and the Kynazev brothers.

"Felicity!" Nikolai called out, shoving past Digg and Sara and running up to her. She took a step forward and fell into his embrace, arms wrapping around his middle as his came around her shoulders. "What happened? We saw you leave the ballroom in a hurry then the next thing we knew there's a big commotion and people are saying guns were pulled out. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." She said against his chest. Nikolai pulled back to look at her, concern written all over his face. "Nikki, I'm fine, really. You don't need to worry."

"Are you sure you're okay?" Dimitri asked, coming up with Dominic to stand beside their brother.

"Yes, I just think it'd be best if I went to bed."

"Alright," Nikolai said, cupping her face. "If you think that'd be best." He leaned down and kissed her on the forehead. He rubbed his thumbs over her cheeks one more time before stepping back. Dimitri leaned down and wrapped his arms around her waist, scooping her up in a hug. Felicity put her arms around his neck and squeezed. He set her down after a moment and kissed her cheek.

"We'll be in town for a few days. Call us if you need anything." Dominic came up in front of Felicity and pulled her into a hug.

"We're serious. Call if you need anything."

"I know." Dominic kissed her cheek too.

"We should probably head to our hotel." Dimitri said.

"Yes," Oliver said rather sharply. "You should." The men bid their goodbyes to the rest of the group and left.

"Sara and I'll take Felicity upstairs." Thea said, placing a hand between Felicity's shoulder blades. The three women made their way upstairs but before they were out of sight, Felicity cast one more glance at Oliver. She smiled softly before disappearing up the stairs.

"What happened?" Digg asked.

"One of the guests was an imposter. He knew about the attack on Felicity's life."

"Which means someone squealed." Roy said.

"Or someone's a spy." Digg provided.

"Either way, we have a traitor among us." Oliver said coldly.

 

\---

 

"What information have we collected so far?" The man asked his informants.

"Felicity Megan Smoak, height 5'3, hair dyed blonde, eye colour blue, twenty three years of age. Child of Donna Smoak, status alive and Alexander Smoak, status deceased. Currently living in the Queen mansion, bodyguard Roy Harper, friends with Thea Queen, Sara Lance, Tommy Merlyn and John Diggle. Possible infatuation with Bratva Captain Oliver Queen. Has had previous sexual relations with Copper Sheldon, known hacker, Count Sebastian Vertigo, Count of Blackpool and Dimitri, Nikolai and Dominic Kynazev, nephews of Anatoly Kynazev, leader of the Bratva. Has a 151 IQ, is skilled with technology of all kinds and is excellent at all types of card games. Has been described as head strong and stubborn yet kind and loving."

"Ah," Said the man after his informant was done, leaning back in his chair. "You forgot the most important part, her protectiveness and concern for her family, friends and others. She responded quickly to the recording we placed under the dock at the Queen mansion. She believed someone was in danger and left the safety of the mansion to investigate. We can use this to our advantage. If we can draw her out and away from the house, we can eliminate her." The man slammed his fist against his desk.

"Then her fathers section of the Bratva will be left without a possible heir and it will be ripe for the taking. And that will begin our demolition of the Bratva from within." The man added, a sick smile sliding across his face.

 

***

 

**Next!**

-Olicity!

-Sharing a bed trope!

-Sexual tension!

-Seriously, it's basically just Olicity

-I mean, there is like one background character and Thea and that's it

-Total Olicity, all the time, all day, every day


	7. Just a Kiss

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait! Time flies when you have work to do and half way through this chapter my muse shut down (she came back though, it's okay)  
> Hope you like it!  
> -Addie

**"Just A Kiss"**

Lyin' here with you so close to me  
It's hard to fight these feelings when it feels so hard to breathe  
Caught up in this moment  
Caught up in your smile

I've never opened up to anyone  
So hard to hold back when I'm holding you in my arms  
We don't need to rush this  
Let's just take it slow

Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight  
Just a touch of the fire burning so bright  
No I don't want to mess this thing up  
I don't want to push too far  
Just a shot in the dark that you just might  
Be the one I've been waiting for my whole life  
So baby I'm alright, with just a kiss goodnight

I know that if we give this a little time  
It'll only bring us closer to the love we wanna find  
It's never felt so real, no it's never felt so right

Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight  
Just a touch of the fire burning so bright  
No I don't want to mess this thing up  
I don't want to push too far  
Just a shot in the dark that you just might  
Be the one I've been waiting for my whole life  
So baby I'm alright, with just a kiss goodnight

No I don't want to say goodnight  
I know it's time to leave, but you'll be in my dreams

Tonight  
Tonight  
Tonight

Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight  
Just a touch of the fire burning so bright  
No I don't want to mess this thing up  
I don't want to push too far  
Just a shot in the dark that you just might  
Be the one I've been waiting for my whole life  
So baby I'm alright, oh, let's do this right, with just a kiss goodnight  
With a kiss goodnight  
Kiss goodnight

 

Felicity was having a very fitful sleep. She chalked it up to this being the first time she had gone to bed after an attack and not taken her medication. She still didn't need it. She was calm, she wasn't panicking and there was nothing going on to change that. But she still couldn't sleep. Felicity had never experienced the after effects of her panic attacks and her medication often calmed her enough to let her fall asleep. She had tried walking around her room, seeing if that would calm her body. She had put a loose fitting cardigan on to see if the warmth would make her tired. She drank a glass of cold water but the walking and drinking only served to walk her up more. It was like her body was tired but her brain wouldn't let her sleep. It was two in the morning and Felicity was ready to pull her hair out when a thought occurred to her.

 _I promise that I'll always be around to protect you Felicity, to keep you safe. If you ever don't feel safe, come find me. I promise that I'll make you feel safe again._ Oliver's words bounced around in her head and she was pulling her bedroom door open before she could think otherwise. Her night guard who had been sitting in a chair, reading a book across from her room, jerked at the movement of her opening her door, hand flashing to his holstered gun.

"Miss. Smoak?" He asked, confused. "Is something wrong?" Felicity could hear a hint of a Russian accent.

"No, not really. Well, there is something wrong seeing as I'm awake at two in the morning but it's nothing that you need to worry about, actually I need you to answer a question for me and if you don't know the answer that's fine I guess but-" The guard chuckled and set his book down, standing.

"Roy said you were a rambler." Felicity crossed her arm defensively.

"Well I think Roy shouldn't talk about people behind their backs." The man shook his head and extended a hand.

"I'm Ivan, it's nice to meet you Miss. Smoak."

"Felicity Smoak." She stated. "But you already knew that, obviously."

"You said you had a question to ask me?" Ivan said, pulling his hand back.

"Oh, right! Do you know where Mr. Queen's room is?" Ivan looked taken aback.

"Are you not satisfied with something Miss. Smoak? Is there something I can get you?" He looked behind his at the chair he was sitting in. "If you have a problem with me sitting and reading I can stand all night if you prefer-"

"Ivan." Felicity said sternly. "I'm not going to his room to complain, I need to talk to him. You've done nothing wrong." Ivan nodded, then began walking to the end of the hall.

"Mr Queen's room is the very last door at the end of this hall." Ivan gestured to the door directly in front of them. They came to a halt and Felicity looked back down the hall to see that her room was only four doors down from Oliver's. When she was moved to a different room her first night here, Oliver moved her across the house to be closer to him. Ivan reached out and rapped his knuckles against Mr. Queen's door. They only had to wait a few seconds before the door was wrenched open and an angry Oliver stood on the other side.

"What?" He barked. Ivan tensed and had a moment where his mind went blank before Felicity saved him from Oliver's wraith and poked out from behind Ivan, into Oliver's view. She gave a small wave in greeting.

"Hi," She said shyly. She noticed Oliver's face registering that she was there and the intensity of his features melted away.

"What's wrong Felicity?" His eyes flicked to Ivan for a brief moment and Felicity stepped up to defend him.

"It has nothing to do with Ivan, I just-" Felicity took a deep breath. "You told me if I ever didn't feel safe I should come find you." Oliver nodded, understanding and opened the door wider to accommodate Felicity. She took that as her invitation to come inside and she entered his room. Oliver looked back at Ivan.

"I'll let her stay here tonight. You are free to do other work. Go see if Dorian needs help in the security room." Ivan nodded.

"Yes, sir." He stated and turned on his heel. Oliver closed the door and turned to find Felicity standing unsure in the middle of his room. She was fiddling nervously with her fingers, which were clasped in front of her. She was glancing around the room, taking everything in.

"I didn't..." Felicity paused, her eyes landing on Oliver. He was in his version of pyjamas which was no shirt and a pair of low hanging sweatpants. Her eyes moved over the expanse of his chest, noting the scars that resided there. She recognized the Bratva Captain star over his heart but not the string of Chinese letters that ran down his left side. Felicity's tongue poked out to wet her lips as her eyes continued down over his abs and even more scars. She struggled to string words together as her eyes fixated on the V of his hipbones which sloped below his sweatpants. "I didn't really think ahead to what I would do once I actually got the chance to talk to you." She managed to say, eyes quickly moving back to Oliver's.

"Why don't you feel safe?" Oliver asked, walking up to stand in front of her. Felicity craned her neck to look up at him.

"I feel, alone I guess. Isolated. I think not taking my medication has kind of kept my brain on panic mode. Like I can't calm down, even if I try really hard."

"So you came to see me." Oliver said wonderstruck. Felicity shrugged.

"You make me feel safe." She stated simply, like it was obvious.

"Do you want to sleep here tonight?" Oliver asked. Felicity looked uncertain but nodded slowly.

"Yes please. I feel like that will calm me." She gave a sharp nod then turned and walked over to the couch. Before she had the chance to sit down, Oliver caught her arm, turning her back towards him.

"Felicity, what are you doing?" She gestured to the couch.

"I'm going to sleep." Oliver shook his head at her.

"I won't let you sleep on the couch when you came to me for protection. You said that human contact calms you. Why would you sleep all the way over here when my bed fits two?" Felicity's eyes flicked to his bed across the room and a deep blush flooded her cheeks.

"It's fine. I'm the one intruding and knowing that you're a few feet away is good enough for me. Goodnight Oliver." She tried to turn and free her arm but Oliver held tight.

"Felicity," He said lowly, tugging her slightly closer. "Don't be ridiculous. I want to help you and I can't do that if you're over here."

"I'll sleep on the couch. It's my choice, end of discussion." This time Felicity tried to use her other hand to remove his from her arm. Oliver wouldn't budge. "Let go Oliver." She said sternly.

"No." He snarled. "You will sleep, where I say." Oliver's other hand rose and slipped around her back. His palm flattened over the small of her back and pulled her closer to him. In this position, Oliver was towering over Felicity.

"I can sleep wherever I like." She stated stubbornly.

"I wasn't asking." He growled. Oliver leaned down slightly and Felicity thought for a moment that he would kiss her. Instead, the hand on her back slipped down to wrap his arm around her legs as Oliver bent over to toss Felicity over his shoulder. She let out a startled yelp and tried to flail her legs in protest.

"Oliver, put me down!" She did her best to beat her fists against his bare back as he made his way over to the bed. "Put. Me. Dow-ah!" Felicity cried out as Oliver complied and chucked her onto the bed. She landed with a bounce among the pillows and sheets. She started to sit up on her elbows but she didn't get very far before she came face to face with Oliver, who had thrown the covers over the two of them. He had placed his forearms on either side of her shoulders and had his upper body hovering over her. He leaned forward and Felicity slowly lowered herself back down against the mattress.

"This is better than a couch, isn't it?" Oliver asked, tilting his head.

"Well, I never got the chance to test the couch out before you so rudely threw me over your shoulder."

"Hm," Oliver hummed absentmindedly as his eyes slid over the skin that wasn't covered by her tank top or her cardigan. The slope of her neck, her protruding collarbone, the skin that dipped low and under her tank top, the teasing beginning of the swell of her breasts. Oliver watched as her skin turned red under his gaze and his eyes moved back up to Felicity's to find her entire face the same shade of red. He wondered exactly how low that blush went. You're supposed to protect her, quit thinking about her like that. Oliver mentally shouted at himself. He choose to ignore his own warning. Felicity did her best to scowl at the primitive wandering of his eyes and she was about to make a retort when Oliver beat her to it.

"Why are you wearing a sweater Felicity? Cold?" His leg brushed hers and Felicity sucked in a breath, nodding because she didn't trust her voice at that moment. "You won't be needing this sweater." Oliver said as one of his hands reached over to undo one of the buttons.

"And why is that?" Felicity asked, her eyes following the movement of his fingers as he undid another button, gradually making his way down her chest.

"Because I'm here to keep you warm." Oliver undid the last button and slipped his hand around Felicity, effectively flipping her on top of him as he rolled over. He sat up with Felicity sitting in his lap, her knees bracketing his hips. Holding her like this brought Felicity and Oliver close together and she couldn't do anything else other than stare into his blue eyes as a smug smile crept across his face. Their chests were practically touching with how close Oliver had her in his lap. Their breath mixed together, hot and fast as Oliver slipped his hands under her cardigan, pushing it off her shoulders and throwing it half hazardously onto the floor. His face held a whole different type of intensity now.

Oliver settled his hands on Felicity's hips, his eyes flicking across the newly exposed skin. He saw her blush deepen and Oliver looked up at her, pleased with himself. He slid his hands to her back, pulling her chest against his, Felicity arching slightly at the contact. Oliver leaned forward, watching as Felicity's eyes fluttered shut as his nose brushed hers. Her mouth fell open in a gasp as his beard scrapped across her cheek. Oliver tipped his head and placed his lips against the shell of her ear. She shuddered as he spoke.

"Goodnight Felicity." Oliver rolled Felicity back onto her back, then back onto his side, leaving her gasping and way too over heated. He turned the light out and Felicity saw that as her cue to fall asleep. She closed her eyes but kept coming up with images of Oliver pressed against her. She rolled over, back facing him, trying to take up as little space as possible, trying to get him out of her head. Felicity did her best to fall asleep but even having Oliver across the bed wasn't calming her enough. She still felt alone, even in this big house full of people. She decided to focus on Oliver, to see if that would relax her at all.

_Oliver keeps me safe. Oliver looks out for me. Oliver has a great body. I wonder how his muscles would feel as I ran my fingers over them, feeling them jump under my touch, to lick a path-WOAH. Do not go there._

On second thought, Felicity felt like she was worse off then she was before she came to see him. There was no way she could sleep now with her imagination cooking up. Like how she wondered what it would be like to have the scruff of his face brushing against the inside of her thighs- _cut it out._

Felicity shivered at the thought, curling the blankets around herself. Suddenly there was a strong arm wrapping around Felicity's waist and she was being hauled to the other side of the bed. With a sharp tug, Felicity ended up flying backwards against Oliver's chest.

"You're a lot lighter than you look." Oliver remarked. Felicity huffed out a breath.

"Thanks, I think. Now if you'll excuse me..." Felicity pushed off Oliver and was scooting back to her side of the bed when Oliver grabbed her again, pulling her back to him. Her back was facing Oliver and he pulled her until it was flush against his chest. His arm stayed secured around her waist and he nuzzled into her hair.

"You'll be staying close to me tonight." Oliver breathed into her hair.

"Oliver, what are you doing?" Felicity asked, a little breathless.

"Keeping you warm and providing human contact."

"I'm fine." Felicity said, trying to wiggle out of his hold but Oliver tightened his grip, stilling her movements.

"Don't fight me Felicity." He said through gritted teeth. "You'll sleep where I tell you to." His voice told her that there was no room for discussion. She sighed angrily and tried to relax. Felicity felt herself slowly falling asleep, the warmth and the comforting arm around her lulling her deeper into sleep.

 

" _My_ _father is going to kill you when he finds me." Felicity spat at her room full of captors. The three men laughed and one crouched in front of her._

_"Is that right?" He said mockingly. "When your father finds out where you are Princess, he'll be walking right into a trap. I'll be the one to put a bullet in his head, right after he watches me put one in yours. The Bratva need to be taught a lesson. And what better way to do that than to kill the daughter of one of their Captains then the Captain himself?" The man grabbed her face roughly and Felicity spat in his eye._

_"You little bitch!" He snapped his gun across her face, blood filling her mouth as spots danced in her vision._

_"Hey!" One of the other men yelled. "Boss said you weren't allowed-"_

_"The boss said we weren't allowed to kill her before her daddy got here. He didn't say anything about roughing her up a bit. What does it matter if we make her bleed?" He looked back at Felicity. "She'll be dead soon enough." Something flashed behind her captors heads and Felicity knew it was the familiar glare off a sniper rifle._

_"Not if I kill you first." Felicity countered. The man who hit her laughed long and loud._

_"And how exactly is a sixteen year old going to manage that? Especially one that's tied to a chair, without any weapons?"_

_"Who said I was tied to the chair?" Felicity lifted her hands from where they should have been tied behind her back. The man stepped back in surprise for a split second before raising his gun. Felicity was faster. She dove at the man, hearing the gunshots and cries of the other men as the Bratva member on the roof took them out. The man Felicity had attacked knocked her off him and got on top of her. She struggled under him and he laughed humourlessly._

_"Daddy's here, time to die Princess."_

_"You first." Felicity drove her pocket knife, the one she used to cut her bindings, into the stomach of her attacker. He cried out and Felicity pushed him off her, driving the blade into his shoulder and grabbing his discarded gun. The man knelt on the floor, pressing his hands against the wound in his abdomen. Felicity lifted the gun, pointed straight at the mans head. The Bratva members flooded into the room, Felicity's father leading the charge. He had his men come to a halt as they watched Felicity face off against the man._

_"Told you I'd kill you." Felicity said viciously. "But first, you need to answer some of my questions." She hauled the injured man to his feet, much to his protest, and threw him into the chair she had been occupying. One of her fathers men came over and zip cuff the the man to the chair._

_"You're not getting anything out of me."_

_"I think I will." Felicity pulled her pocket knife out of his shoulder harshly and the man bit out a curse._

_"I'm bleeding out Princess, I won't be alive much longer."_

_"Then I better make good use of the time you have left." Felicity pointed the blade downward and drove it in the mans thigh. He screamed again and Felicity pulled it out. "What does the Triad have planned? Why do they believe that the Bratva needs to be taught a lesson." The man laughed, shaking his head. It wasn't the answer Felicity wanted so she aimed the gun at his foot and fired. The bullet went into the middle of his foot, blood spurting out of his shoe._

_"You bitch." He sputtered out over the pain, blood dripping past his lips. The man looked past Felicity at her father._

_"You going to let your little girl do your dirty work for you?"_

_"She seems to be conducting this interrogation perfectly. You attacked her, she has every right to inflict pain upon you." He said, crossing his arms. The man looked at Felicity, smiling a blood smeared smile. He turned his attention back to Felicity's father._

_"You didn't tell her did you? The little Princess has no idea what she's involved in." Felicity became confused and raised the gun against the man._

_"Father, what's he talking about?" She asked, never looking away from the man._

_"It's nothing." Her father answered. She could hear his foot steps getting closer. "Let me take over дорогой [Darling]."_

_"Why? What is he talking about?" The man laughed and Felicity tightened her grip on the gun._

_"The Triad is going to kill you Princess. We are never going to stop trying to kill you. You have to die simply because you're his daughter." He jerked his chin towards her father, who now stood beside her. "You were born into the wrong family Princess."_

_"I haven't done anything in the Bratva yet, why should it matter if I'm dead or not?"_

_"What's the fun in giving you all the answers?" The man chuckled. "We are going to hunt you down. No matter where you go, how far you run, where you hide, we will find you. We'll torture you for days, pulling out fingernails, scraping off skin, pulling teeth, cutting off fingers! And then we'll **gut** you like fish you are and send the remains to your pathetic family to show them what happens when you cross the Triad! The Bratva will fall and-" Felicity became overcome with a mix of fear, adrenaline and rage, and fired the gun, bullet slicing through his skull and brain, spilling blood and brain matter over the floor and Felicity. Felicity started to shake and let the gun fall from her hands. Her father placed his hands on her shoulders, Felicity jerking at the sudden touch._

_"Sh sh sh, it's alright дорогой [Darling], he's dead. You're safe now." Her father turned her away from the dead body and steered her into the arms of Dimitri. The twenty year old wrapped his arms around her, like he was shielding her from what she had done._

_"You killed him." He stated. Felicity nodded against his chest._

_"He was Triad, he deserved it."_

_"No, you killed him." Dimitri punctuated. Felicity pulled back to look at her friends face before turning to see what he was looking at. Her father was looking at the spot where the Triad member had been, but no longer was. Confused, she turned back to Dimitri only to find he wasn't there. None of the men were. She spun back around to her father and screamed at what she saw. He was right in front of her, pale as a corpse, blood running out of his mouth._

_"You killed me." He said, head tilting as he looked at her. Felicity shook her head, hand over her mouth._

_"No, I-I didn't-you-"_

_"You killed me!" He yelled, eyes turning a full black colour, like bottomless pits. Felicity screamed again and turned to run but he was behind her too. He was everywhere, forming a circle of walking dead bodies. Blood began to run out of his eyes, ears and nose, drenching his face and suit._

_"You did this! You couldn't save me! You couldn't help!" All of them reached for her with their cold hands. "I'm dead because of you!" The hands closed around whatever part of her they could reach, Felicity screaming at the top of her lungs while he got closer-_

 

"Felicity!" She woke with a start, screaming and lashing out at the hands holding her. "Felicity, it's me! It's Oliver!" His name broke through her hysteria and Felicity froze immediately. She let out a gasping breath, placing her hand over her mouth to stifle the sobs that bubbled up her throat as she awoke fully. Tears leaked out of her eyes as she lied shaking on the bed. Oliver was hovering over her and for the first time ever, Felicity could clearly see the concern on his face.

"Sh sh sh sh," He soothed, hands rubbing up and down her arms. "It's okay, you're alright." Felicity squeezed her eyes shut as she willed herself to stop crying. "What is it?"

"A nightmare." Felicity said, voice weak. "Actually it was a memory, twisted into a horrible nightmare. My-" She broke off, swallowing. "My father blamed me for his death." Felicity broke into a fit a tears, remembering the accusing look on her fathers blood covered face as he yelled at her. "Hey," Oliver said softly. He slipped his hands under her back and lifted Felicity's trembling form into his arms. He settled his back against the headboard of his bed, Felicity bundled in his lap, turned towards him. She pressed her face into his neck, hand raising to rest on his chest, trying to calm down. One of his arms remained banded around her back and the other hand rested over top of hers on his chest, fingers curling around her hand.

"Sh sh sh sh, I've got you. It's okay, you're safe." He turned his head, so his lips were closer to her temple. "It's not your fault. The death of your father was not your fault." He mumbled against her skin.

"I know." She sniffed. "It's not like it hurts any less though."

"Felicity," Oliver said sternly. "The nightmare doesn't mean anything. You didn't kill your father. You played no part in his death. The dream was just your subconscious playing a cruel joke."

"Yeah, my subconscious is playing a joke on me because I feel guilty." Oliver furrowed his eyebrows.

"How can you feel guilty Felicity? You didn't do anything to harm your father."

"You're right, but I am disrespecting him."

"How?" Oliver asked, confused.

 _God,_ she thought, _isn't it obvious? Since day one when I saw you, I've been falling for you. You practically set my body on fire with the way you were looking at me at dinner my first night. It's against the rules of Mourning to participate in sexual activities with anyone. And even though you and I haven't done anything yet, you make me really want to break that rule. But I would be disgracing my father if I decided to do anything with you. It's also uncommon and usually frowned upon for a Captain to be with someone below him. I'm disrespecting him by falling for you._

"It doesn't matter." Felicity said softly.

"Of course it matters. It matters because you matter Felicity." Felicity held her breathe, fearing that if she opened her mouth, she would say too much. Oliver realized she wasn't going to continue on the subject. "Do you want to talk about the dream?" Felicity nodded slowly, unconsciously nuzzling against Oliver's neck.

"The memory was of the first man I ever killed," Felicity tried not to notice the slight stiffening of Oliver under her. "I've killed people before, did you think I hadn't Oliver?"

"Well, no-I-" He stammered, having trouble visualizing Felicity holding a gun and pulling the trigger. Even though she was such a strong person, she didn't seem like the type to end someone's life.

"I've killed several people. I've maimed and tortured people to get information. I've killed out of fear and for survival. The horrible things that I've done, they're the reason I have panic attacks. My brain is so messed up from all the things I've done and now it's attacking me because of it."

"You did what you had to. Every Bratva member has, at one time or another. You had every right to do whatever you did." Oliver said seriously. Felicity let out a breath of a laugh.

"You don't even know what I've done and you're already comforting me."

"It doesn't matter what you did Felicity. You did what you did and because of that, you're here, alive." Felicity nodded, cheek brushing Oliver's shoulder. She decided to continue talking about her dream.

"The memory was of the first man I ever killed," She repeated. "Only instead of simply leaving after I killed him, my father turned into this... _thing_. Blood started to drip out of every opening on his face. He had these...black soulless eyes. There were so many of them, clawing at me, soaking me with blood..." Felicity shuddered and Oliver's earlier tenseness about their 'killing' conversation melted away as he lifted his hand from hers, wrapping his arm around her and pulled Felicity closer to him. She let herself relax, the earlier excitement wearing off.

"It was just a nightmare Felicity, it can't hurt you."

"You're right." Felicity said, feeling her eyelids getting heavy. "Because you're here." Felicity's hand slipped up Oliver's chest to settle where his shoulder met his neck. She turned more into his embrace, seeking comfort.

"You'd protect me from anything." She sighed, face buried against his neck. "I feel safe with you." The tenseness returned as Felicity's lips grazed across the base of Oliver's throat.

"Felicity..." Oliver said slowly, as a type of warning. 8am Felicity might have noticed the tone of his voice, but 4am Felicity was too tired to care.

"Hm?" She hummed against this throat. The angle she was sitting at in his lap was all wrong. Her legs weren't that close to him and she was sitting more on his left leg than his right. Felicity wiggled in his lap, trying to get in a more comfortable position and Oliver's hand quickly flashed to her hip in an attempt to still her movements.

"Fe-li-ci-ty," Oliver ground out. "Stop."

"Why?" She asked innocently. "I'm getting comfortable and you're warm." She stated. She could feel herself falling back into sleep, enjoying the heat radiating from Oliver.

"You're really comfy." She murmured. "You are like, an A+ cuddlier. You could make some serious money just going around cuddling with people. People would pay you and you would sit somewhere and cuddle. Like a prostitute only instead of sleeping with people, you would cuddle. And I bet you'd have a line out the door because you're handsome and ripped and warm and that's a definite bonus." Felicity's paused."Actually, on second thought, that's really weird. Let's pretend that I never said anything about you being a cuddle prostitute." Oliver smiled and rolled his eyes.

"Just try and sleep Felicity." She relaxed and let herself melt against Oliver as he shifted, getting comfortable. A thought occurred to Felicity and she spoke up.

"Are you going to be here when I wake up?" She asked quietly. "I mean no disrespect but you seem like the kind of guy to dine and dash-not that I'm implying that you ate me-ate anything and then didn't pay for it-" Felicity shouted her mouth loudly, sighed, and tried again. "You seem like the kind of guy to leave before I wake up."

"Felicity," Oliver said sternly. Felicity tilted her head up to look at him staring down at her. The tips of their noses brushed as his hot breath fanned over her face. "I'll be here when you wake up. I would never leave you." Felicity opened her mouth to speak and Oliver's eyes trained on her lips.

"Promise me?" She whispered timidly, tilting her head closer to Oliver's as he leaned slowly forward. Oliver didn't answer her question. Instead he erased the small distance between them, placing his lips over hers. He could hear her breath catch in her throat, lips parting so he could capture her bottom lip. Oliver raises his hand so his fingertips can cradled the side of her jaw as their mouth slanted together. It felt so natural, so right to kiss Felicity, let her mouth move against his, for him to taste her. Oliver knew he could spend hours just kissing Felicity, exploring every corner of her mouth. She molded against him like she was made to do so.

The kiss was soft and short, like a gentle kiss goodnight a couple would share. Only they weren't a couple and that thought had Oliver forcing himself to pull back. Felicity gasped at the loss of contact, eyes still closed. The sight of Felicity so close, with slightly red cheeks and parted lips, made Oliver want to pull her back against him and never let go. With a sigh, he moved his hand from her jaw to the back of her head and slowly set it on his shoulder. Felicity seemed to take the hint and let herself go slack as sleep overcame her. Oliver settled back against his pillow and headboard, snuggling with the woman in his arms as he also fell asleep.

 

An insistent knocking on Oliver's bedroom door was what roused the two of them the next morning. Felicity was still curled up in Oliver's lap, him with his arms around her. They woke at the same time, groggy and a little sore from the position they slept in. By the time they registered the knocking sound it was too late.

"Hey Ollie, Digg wanted to know why you're taking so long to get ready for training..." Thea opened the door and stepped inside, sentence trailing off as she took in the scene on Oliver's bed. Her mouth fell open and Oliver and Felicity looked at each other in shock. Thea slapped a hand over her mouth before she reached out and slammed the door closed. Felicity scrambled off Oliver's lap and ended up sitting in the middle of his bed. Both of them waited for a reaction from Thea, to see how they should approach the situation. Thea suddenly started to jump up and down on the spot, flailing her hands in front of her as she squealed excitedly. She ran to the bed and tackled Felicity, hugging her tightly.

"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!" She practically screamed in Felicity's ear. She pulled back and beamed at a very confused Felicity. "I can't believe my plan worked! You two got together! This is the best thing ever!" Felicity blinked dumbly before shaking her head frantically.

"No, no, no, Thea, Oliver and I are not together." Thea rolled her eyes.

"Of course you are. I caught you sleeping not only in his room but in his bed and in his arms." Felicity gave her a look and Thea pressed forward with more evidence. "You called him Oliver, the chemistry between the two of you is crazy and don't even get me started on the explosive sexual tension. I was honestly wondering why he hadn't screwed you against a wall already."

"Thea!" The two of them cried out in incredulous unison. Thea smiled and pointed at them.

"You're in sync! That's adorable!"

"I'm not doing anything with Felicity, Thea. She is under my protection."

"Are you sure you don't mean she's just plain under you?"

"Thea!" Oliver barked, which had both of the women jerking. "I will not have you making false accusations about me or Felicity. She came to me last night because she didn't feel safe. She wanted reassurance. She came to me to feel safe."

"Don't you mean she came _for_ you?"

"Thea!" They yelled at her again. She raised her hands in surrender and hopped off the bed.

"It's your own fault, you walked into that one. Okay, fine, I believe that you didn't do the nasty last night but it doesn't take away from the fact that _something_ is going on between the two of you. Whether you're doing it on purpose or it's just happening, something is going on." She walked to the door and yanked it open.

"Two more things." She stated, holding up two fingers. "First is that the two of you would be great together despite what you may think and your kids would have the blondest freaking hair." Oliver threw Thea a disapproving glare as Felicity turned red. "Second is that even if you didn't do it last night, I'm still going to crack sex jokes whenever I can because I love making you uncomfortable," She pointed at Oliver. "And you are cute when you're flustered." She said pointed at Felicity.

"Ta ta." She gave a little finger wave in their direction and grabbed the doorknob to close the door. "Oh! And Digg wants to know why you're not at training yet. I'll just tell him you were a little busy." She shouted over her shoulder and her firmly closed the door behind her. Oliver grumbled as he ran a hand over his face. He got out of bed and started to shove stuff into his workout bag.

"I need to go. I need to get to Digg before she opens her big mouth." Felicity nodded as she tugged her legs up against her chest. Oliver put his water bottle and towel into the bag before he stepped on Felicity's sweater. He picked it up and slowly walked over to hand it to her. She gingerly took it from him, both of them getting assaulted with memories of last night. The warm feeling of each other, how easily Felicity fit into Oliver, the comforting words they shared.

"Thanks." She said quietly, daring herself to look up at him. When there eyes met, Felicity knew he was thinking about last night. The problem was she couldn't be sure if she had dreamt the kiss or not. She didn't want to say anything and be horribly wrong.

"You're welcome." Oliver said back, voice strained. "I-I should go." He didn't waited for Felicity's response before throwing his bag over his shoulder and leaving the room, door closing behind him. Felicity sighed angrily at herself and flung herself backwards on the bed in frustration.

 

Oliver took a second outside his bedroom to catch his breath. Memories of their kiss bubbled up in his brain and Oliver did his best to force them down. Felicity hadn't said anything when he handed her her sweater. If he had to guess, he would say that she didn't remember. She was probably half asleep when they kissed-when he kissed her. If that was true then Oliver had taken advantage of Felicity while she was practically asleep and unaware. He growled at himself in anger and frustration, the overwhelming need to hit something pulsing through his veins. He took large strides down the hall, wanted to get to a punching bag so he could hit the crap out of it.

***

**Next!**

-M Rated stuff (wink nudge)

-Malcolm's an ass (surprise surprise)

-Felicity stands her ground

-Super Protective Oliver

-Roy/Thea backstory


	8. Shiver

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here's my early Birthday present from me to you! Being excited about my birthday gave me the push to finsh the chapter so here it is! Enjoy!  
> -Addie

**"Shiver"**

You build me up  
You knock me down  
Provoke a smile  
And make me frown  
You are the queen of runaround  
You know it's true

You chew me up  
And spit me out  
Enjoy the taste  
I leave in your mouth  
You look at me  
I look at you  
Neither of us know what to do

_[Chorus:]_  
There may not  
Be another way to your heart  
So I guess I'd better find a new way in  
I shiver when I hear your name  
Think about you but it's not the same  
I won't be satisfied 'till I'm under your skin

Immobilized by the thought of you  
Paralyzed by the sight of you  
Hypnotized by the words you say  
Not true but I believe 'em anyway

So come to bed It's getting late  
There's no more time for us to waste  
Remember how my body tastes  
You feel your heart begin to race

_[Repeat chorus x3]_

 

 

Oliver was reading a book while sitting against his headboard. There was a small knock on the door and Oliver set the book in his lap as the door opened without permission. Felicity stood timidly in the doorway, wearing a pair of pyjamas similar to what she wore the night before. Her button up sweater was so large it fell off one shoulder.

"Can I sleep here again tonight?" She asked shyly, tucking some hair behind her ear.

"Of course," Oliver nodded before the words were out of his mouth. He set his book on the bedside table as Felicity quickly walked over to the bed. Oliver barely had time to sit up straight again before Felicity was climbing on the bed and into his lap, straddling him. She wrapped her arms around his bare torso and placed her head on his shoulder. She snuggled against him, pulling herself closer so her knees bracketed his hips. "Felicity, what-what are you doing?" Oliver asked, dumbfounded at the actions of the blonde.

"I'm scared Oliver." She said against his skin. "I want to feel safe." She pulled back to look him in the face.

"Will you keep me safe Oliver?" She slowly rolled her hips as she spoke. Oliver placed his hands on her hips to still her movements but it only helped steady her to go faster. She raised her hands to cup the back of his head, stroking the hair at the base of his neck. She ground down against him as Oliver refrained from jerking up against her, enjoying the friction she was causing.

Oliver knew this was wrong, and he was holding onto his control with an iron grip. There were more cons to come out of doing this than there were pros. Sure, he could have mind blowing sex with the woman he was slowly falling for, but the consequences that would impact Felicity and him would be catastrophic for their families, their jobs, their reputations and possibly their standing in the Bratva too. He wasn't just worried about himself. Felicity could lose the chance of becoming the new leader of her fathers section of the Bratva because she had sex with someone of a higher position. That alone can have her lose almost everything. She would be breaking the rules and if there was something the Bratva was good at besides smuggling and making people disappear, it was up holding their rules and restrictions. Felicity tipped Oliver's head back by gently tugging at his hair, getting his attention. She lowered her face closer to his, breath mixing as she stared down at him.

"Will you protect me Oliver?" She asked, a thoughtful look on her face. She gave a hard roll of her hips to emphasize the word protect. He wanted to protect her, to shelter her and shield her from whatever would come her way. He would break anyone who dared to touch her, kill anyone who dared to try and hurt her. It scared him that after almost two weeks he was already ready to kill however came too close to her. Felicity was already affecting everyone in the house. Thea was opening up more, Roy was more laid back, Diggle smiled more often and Oliver himself was a lot kinder. He had taken care of Felicity, let her out of his sight and break the boundaries of his rules and he couldn't bring himself to reprimand her. She was thawing his cold heart and there was nothing he could do about it. To freeze his heart he would have to push her away but he instead wanted to keep her as close as possible.

"Tell me you'll keep me safe. Tell me you want to keep me close. Please Oliver, tell me you want me to be safe with you."

"Yes." Oliver breathed out, control snapping as he leaned forward to capture her lips with his. Felicity opened her mouth to let Oliver trap her bottom lip. He sucked on it, letting his teeth graze over it which had her grounding her hips down against him. In an attempt to pull her closer, Oliver slid his hands around to her back, hands slipping under her shirt, feeling her warm skin underneath. He wanted to touch her, feel her soft flesh for hours, explore every part of her that would otherwise be counselled by clothing. He was appreciating that she wasn't wearing a bra.

He rolled his hips up into hers, causing a wonderful amount of friction for him and Felicity that had her moaning into Oliver's mouth. He took the opportunity to slide his tongue inside her mouth, tasting her. Felicity dragged her nails across Oliver's neck, over his shoulders and down the front of his chest. She moved past his scars and tattoos like they weren't even there. Her nails dug into his abdomen muscles, which had Felicity smiling into Oliver's mouth at the reaction she got. His muscles jumped under her touch as her fingers drifted dangerously downward, twitching under her careful but determined path. Oliver growled against her, snatching her wrists, pulling her hands off him as he pulled his mouth away from hers to suck a path down her neck.

With her wrists secured in Oliver's hands she was helpless to do anything else other than let her head fall back, giving him more excess. He started at her jawline and moved downward, leaving bruised skin from his mouth and red, blotchy skin from his beard. Oliver pulled back to look at the markings he left on her neck.

"Purple's a good colour on you." He commented. Felicity grumbled incoherently and pulled one of her hands free to hold the back of his head, guiding it back to her neck.

"Less talking, more kissing." Oliver complied only instead of continuing his previous assault on her neck, he chose a different tactic. He lowered his mouth to her skin, and bit down. Felicity cried out, back arching at the sensation and she pulled her other hand free to hold him against her neck. Oliver licked over the bite wound and started to nip down her neck, trying to nose the fabric of her sweater out of the way. Fed up with the constricting material, Oliver decided it had to come off. His fingers made quick work of the buttons on her sweater, hands snaking under it to push it off her shoulders. Felicity took her hands away from Oliver to let him pull her arms out of the sweater. He yanked the sweater away from her body, tossing it away as he latched his mouth back to her. Oliver kissed across her shoulder, nipping at the newly exposed skin. Felicity's head fell back as Oliver's mouth drifted down the front of her chest. His hands slipped under the hem of her tank top and began to push it up, Felicity raising her arms, getting the message. Her top joined her sweater on the floor and Oliver took a moment to survey over her body, his eyes moving rapidly over the newly exposed flesh. it was like a sensory overload and Oliver leaned in to kiss her breasts.

Felicity didn't give him the chance. She placed her hands on his chest as shoved him against the headboard, head dipping to return an assault on his neck. Oliver's head fell back against his bed with a thud as she sucked on his flesh. Not being the one to dish out the pleasure had Oliver thinking back to the hundreds of reasons why this was wrong.

"I shouldn't be doing this." He rasped out, hands involuntarily raising to get a solid grip on her ass, dragging her further into his lap.

"Shouldn't be doing what Oliver?" Felicity asked, pulling back from a particularly hard suck. "Loving me?" Felicity raised her hands to his face and pulled him into another hard kiss. Oliver could resist placing a hand on her back to firmly press her naked chest against his.

"I should be protecting you. This isn't the way to do that." He said in between the parting of their mouths.

"You're keeping me close," Felicity countered, fingers threading through his short hair. "What better way to protect me than to keep me as close as possible?"

"I should keep you at a safe distance." His hand squeezed her ass.

"No, you shouldn't." She bit his lip while he groaned.

"Just being near me makes you a target." He pulled her back so he could kiss down her breasts, lips wrapping around her nipple.

"I was a target before I met you." She gripped his hair, holding him against her.

"I'm a bad person. I've done horrible things. You shouldn't be exposed to that." He pulled back with a wet pop, switching to give the other breast attention.

"I've done horrible things too. I've already been exposed to everything the Bratva has to offer." Her fingers snaked down and slipped under the hem of his sweatpants, palming his hard length.

"I'm dangerous." His hands slipped under her leggings, grabbing her bare ass as his hips jerked against her ministrations.

"I don't care." She moaned and arched into him as he bit her skin again.

Oliver pulled back with a grin on her face and Felicity let out a breath. "Satisfied with yourself Mr. Queen?"

"No. I won't be satisfied until you're under me." Oliver's hands left her pants to hold her back while he flipped them over. Felicity hit the mattress with Oliver leaning over her.

"Well, this look familiar." She commented on their current position. Oliver leaned down and kissed her hard, tongue slipping into her mouth. Her hands began to push at the waistband of his sweatpants, obviously wanting the restricting item of clothing off. Oliver hooked his fingers in her leggings and pulled them down and off her legs before stripping the rest of the way himself. He took a moment to stared down at her naked form under him, skin flushed, chest heaving, before Felicity lean up and kissed him, pulling him down on top of her. She wrapped her legs around his waist, feeling his cock rub against her stomach. Oliver groaned against Felicity's mouth as she rocked her hips against his length. Oliver pulled his lips from hers and put their foreheads together.

"Please tell me what I'm doing is right. Please tell me this is okay. Felicity..." He gasped out. Felicity grabbed his face and gave him a firm kiss.

"It's more than okay." She rolled her hips, leaving Oliver to take in a gulping breath. "I don't care about anything else. Please Oliver." She pleaded with him. He kissed her neck and was quick to comply, lining up with her entrance before pushing in-

 

Oliver jerked awake, chest heaving and coated in sweat. His eyes took a second to adjust to light before he realized he was in bed, alone. Digg's voice drifted through the door.

"Oliver you have a meeting in an hour. I suggest you shower up and get dressed."

"I'll be in my office in a half hour." Oliver replied hoarsely.

"Alright, I'll pull out the proper files." He could hear Digg's footsteps receding down the hall before Oliver focused on his little problem.

It had been a dream. A freaking wonderful erotic dream about the girl he was supposed to be keeping safe. It had felt amazing and oh so right to have her there with him. Even the night before when they didn't actually _do_ anything, it had felt right. Holding her, caring for her, kissing her... Thea was right. Not a day had gone by since Felicity arrived that he hadn't wanted to fuck her against the wall.

Oliver had to be downstairs and be ready to set up for the meeting in twenty five minutes. He decided to finish himself off in the shower with images from his dream still fresh in his brain and Felicity's name tumbling past his lips as he did.

 

"Oh for Gods sake Thea! Nothing happened!" Felicity said angry and exasperated. Thea laughed at her friend from the other side of the room while she rifled through her closet.

"I'm just pulling your leg Felicity." She said back, pulling an orange dress out of her closet only to throw it back in with a look of disgust. "Besides, you won't even tell me what happen so I'm just going off of what I saw." Felicity grumbled and spun on the bed to face Roy who was standing by the door.

"Can you please tell her that nothing happened? She seems to listen to you." Roy shook his head while he chuckled and crossed his arms.

"First, I don't know what the two of you are even talking about because no one will fill me in. Second, Thea doesn't listen to anybody."

"This is true. God, I can't find anything colourful yet dark for you to wear. You're finally at the point of Mourning where you can wear slightly colourful stuff and I'm coming up with nothing." Thea said, tossing a pink blouse back into the closet. "So, do you wanna know the compromising position I found Felicity and Ollie in yesterday morning?" Roy slammed his eyes shut and placed his hands over his ears.

"No thank you. I'd like to not have images in my brain of my boss and the girl I'm guarding in a compromising position." Roy grumbled and shook his head. "Too late."

"Thea," Felicity chastised. "Don't be mean to Roy." She turned back to Roy. "I fell asleep in his lap, that's it. Erase all the images in your head because none of them have happened."

"Yet." Thea corrected, shutting her closet door. Felicity rolled her eyes and Roy let out a breath.

"Good to know nothing my brain cooked up actually happened. It's kinda weird to think about, I have no idea why Thea is so chill about it. You brother and you best friend possibly going at it? How does that not bother you?" Thea shrugged and flopped down on her bed beside Felicity.

"If I had to chose someone for Ollie to bang and hopefully fall for, it would be Felicity. They're too perfect for each other it's creepy."

"Oh really?" Felicity asked. "What about the arguments we've had?" Thea pointed at her friend and smiled.

"That's the best part about the two of you. Most people would wave their little white flag as soon as Ollie got angry but you stand your ground. No matter who it is or how much bigger they are, you don't let them get off easy. You go toe to toe with my brother and I think it's a good change for him."

"Well, if you get to play matchmaker for me, can I be matchmaker for you?" Thea smiled at the idea and sat up.

"Sure!"

"Felicity..." Roy warned, remembering the conversation the two of them had about him being in love with Thea a few days ago. Felicity looked back at him and took pity on the slightly scared look on his face. She patted the bed beside her.

"I'll play matchmaker later. Come sit, I have a question to ask the two of you that I've been wondering since we met." Roy step gingerly on the edge of the bed and Thea turned to face Felicity head on, sitting crosslegged. "How did the two of you meet?"

"Roy saved my life. And not in the sappy kind of way, like his presence brightened up my life and gave me purpose. I mean he saved me from getting a bullet through the head." Felicity's eyes widened with shock.

"Jesus, are you okay?" She set a hand over Thea's.

"Yeah, it was your run of the mill scary moment, but no scratches and I'm still breathing. All thanks to Mr. Roy Harper." Thea smiled fondly at her saviour.

"So, what happened exactly?" Felicity asked.

 

 _For Thea, it felt like the benefit was dragging on forever. She never asked to come to it, in fact she was practically dragged to it kicking and screaming by her mother. This was a benefit for a cause Thea didn't know anything about and all the people here were over 30. She was pretty sure she was the only 'young person' present. No one was talking to Thea because they probably thought she couldn't carry on a decent conversation, or at least a conversation about anything they were interested in. Usually Thea had her bodyguard to talk to but Peter had been injured the week before and was still in recovery. So Thea had a different bodyguard that took the job_ way _too seriously. He was very into 'be seen, not heard' thing. The only person who talked to her was her brother because he wanted to check up on her. But every time they started to get into a real conversation, another Bratva member came along to snatch him away._

_This is what led Thea to spot the young man across the ballroom. He was very handsome, with a square jaw and brown hair. He stood rigidly by the wall, which had Thea guessing he was a bodyguard. Which she found to be very odd because he looked to be her age and bodyguards rarely started that young. She knew that he was probably trying to prove himself and decided it would be stupid to try and talk to him since he'd probably be so focused on work. So instead when she caught his eye, she raised her champagne flute in a greeting and gave him a sultry smile. She saw his eyes dart side to side and Thea laughed as he made sure she was smiling at him._

_'Me?' He mouthed to her. Thea nodded, still smiling._

_'I'm bored. You?' She mouthed slowly so he could understand clearly._

_'Me too.'_

_'I'm ready to,' Thea put a finger gun to her temple and pressed her thumb down as the trigger. She mimed her brains being blown out the other side. She saw the man laugh a little, his otherwise passive mouth cracking at the corners._

_'I'm getting there.' He mouthed back. Thea was going to answer him when someone drew his attention. His expression sobered and he became rigid. He pulled away from the wall and followed the person without a second glance at Thea._

_I hope I didn't get him in trouble._

_The next few minutes were like the start of the benefit, boring. Thea was going to find her mother so she could throw a fit and hopefully get to leave when the gunshots and screaming started._

_Thea dropped her glass in shock as people ran past her, pushing and shoving. A woman to her left was sent sprawling to the floor after a bullet through the large windows sliced through her back. Thea stood there dumbly as the chaos erupted around, people screaming and people getting shot and dying._

_"Thea!" She looked up to see Oliver pushing his way through the crowd to get to her. He shoved a man off him in his haste, barely letting anyone get in his way. When she saw the fear flash in his eyes and him move faster, she knew she was done for. She just couldn't move. Then she was moving, her body slamming into the ground as a heavy weight landed on her, shielding her from the bullets. The bullet intended for her hit a man running past, sending him to the floor beside Thea, dead. She stared at the man's blank face, blood dripping down from his temple._

_That could have been me._

_Thea was pulled to her feet suddenly and was ushered to the wall under the windows. This kept her out of sight and the line of fire. The person who saved her moved down down the wall to the corner where they proceeded to push her until she was kneeling on the floor. This made her smaller and less of a target. The person who knocked her down previously was now boxing her in, still shielding her from danger. She finally got the chance to look at her saviour. The handsome bodyguard._

_"You!" Thea exclaimed._

_"It's alright Miss. Queen, you're safe for now."_

_"You know, when I said I was so bored I was ready to blow my brains out, I didn't actually mean it." She said half heartedly. The man's mouth twitched, fighting off a smile. "Thank you for saving me." Thea said sincerely. She placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. "Really, thank you. What's your name?"_

_"My name's Roy Harper and I'm just doing my job Miss. Queen. Plus you can thank me once I've got you safely out of the room." After a minute or so the shooting stopped and Roy and Thea were the only people left in the room that were still alive. Everyone else had either gotten out in time or had been shot. Thea could see people she knew and some of which she grew up knowing, dead on the floor. She surveyed the room and tears began to fall down her face._

_"Miss. Queen? What's wrong? Are you hurt?" Thea shook her head and placed a hand over her mouth while she cried._

_"No, it's just-" Thea's eyes flicked over the mass of dead bodies and landed on a grey haired man with a large bushy beard._

_"Marcus used to read me books whenever he came to stay at the house to talk to my father about business in Switzerland. He liked to make up stories with me that he would write down so I could keep them for later." She moved to another body, a man with brown hair and loud mutton chops._

_"Vasily always sent me chocolates on my birthday. Just milk chocolate because he knew how much I hate dark chocolate." She spied a woman with jet black hair._

_"Irina was the mother of my first boyfriend. She helped me find a love for piano." A red haired woman in a sparkling green dress and glasses caught her eye._

_"Annette taught me how to ballroom dance. She always laughed when I stepped on my partners toes." Her eyes moved to a woman in blue, whose dress was now soaked in blood._

_"Oh god, Valerlya was pregnant. It would have been her first child." She sobbed out as she looked over the room at the people she known her whole life. Roy pulled her against him and they stayed in the corner until Bratva members flooded the ballroom and they found that the shooter had gone. Oliver and Moira burst into the room and began to shout._

_"Thea?"_

_"Thea Darling, where are you?"_

_"Thea? Answer me!" Thea stood with Roy, who guided carefully to her family as she wiped under her eyes. As soon as they spotted her, they ran over. They both pulled her into a family hug, Moira kissing her cheek and Oliver cradling her head._

_"Are you hurt?" Oliver asked doing a once over._

_"No, no I'm fine, thanks to Mr. Harper." Thea gestured to the man beside her. Moira took the man's hands and squeezed them tightly._

_"Thank you for saving my little girl." Roy nodded appropriately but tensed up when Oliver stepped in front of him. He clapped Roy on the back and shook his hand firmly._

_"Thank you for saving my sister. If there's anything you need, tell me and it's yours."_

_"Will do Sir." The group made their way out of the ballroom and into the foyer. While Oliver and Moira were talking to some other members, Thea pulled Roy to the side. She leaned up and planted a kiss to his cheek. She pulled back, smiling weakly._

_"You said I could thank you as soon as you got me out of the room safely. Thank you Roy." He nodded and she turned to join her brother. "I hope to see you again."_

 

"So after that craziness was done and over with, we got several openings in the mansion a week or so later. I didn't have to fight Ollie to give Roy a job, he practically leapt at the chance. We snatched Roy up and here we are, with him as your new bodyguard."

"Well I'm glad you're okay and that you became my bodyguard. I would have hated to have 'be seen and not heard, guy. Not having someone to talk to sometimes, sucks."

"Yeah, it was a horrible evening even if that guy hadn't started shooting. I mean, I chipped a nail before the craziness started. If that's not a sign something bad was going to happen, I don't know what is." Felicity's smiled at Thea's attempt to lighten a heavy conversation. Thea gasped suddenly and gripped Felicity's arm.

"Chipped my nail!" She exclaimed excitedly. She leapt off the bed and ran to her vanity. She riffled through the drawers for a moment. Roy leaned over to Felicity.

"Do you think she's finally lost it? She acting a little crazy and frantic." Felicity shrugged.

"You've known her longer, you tell me."

"Aha!" Thea said triumphantly. She ran back over to the bed and spilled an armful of nail polish onto the bed. "I can't find any clothes for you to wear that is dark enough to still show you're in Mourning but colourful enough to show you can wear colours. I do however have a large amount of dark yet colourful nail polish. Take your pick. It's subtle yet a statement at the same time." Felicity smiled and hugged Thea.

"This is great, you're a genius." Thea placed a hand on her hip and threw her hair back over her shoulder.

"I have my moments." Felicity picked out a deep pink to put on her nails. The girls spent the next few minutes painted each others nails while making small talk with Roy. While they were applying the last layer, Thea asked Felicity a question.

"Last week, when you ran outside because you thought you heard someone who needed help, did you mean it when you told Oliver you'd stay in the house forever?" Felicity paused and looked up from painting her thumb.

"I don't think I said forever, but he scared me enough into promising to stay inside for awhile. As soon as he trusts me enough to let me go for as something simple as a walk, I'll leave."

"It's not a matter of trust Felicity," Roy said, not looking up from where he was helping Thea paint her toes orange. "I think he trusts you, he's just worried about the threats and attempts on your life. He trusts you not to run off, he doesn't trust the people outside who'll probably put a bullet in you." Felicity sighed.

"You're probably right."

"Well why don't we ask him?" Thea asked blowing on her nails.

"Ask who, what?"

"Ask Ollie if you can go outside for a walk. We can take extra protection, it'll be fine." Felicity shook her head.

"I think it'd be best if I stayed inside."

"Do you want to go outside for a walk?"

"Well, yeah, of course-" Felicity said with a shrug.

"Well alright then." Thea interrupted, standing up and walking to the door. "I'll go ask Ollie to let you leave the house." Felicity got up and raced after Thea who ran out the door.

"Thea no!" Thea giggled and ran around a corner. "Stop being difficult! I don't want to make him angry asking if we can leave the house!"

"Oh it'll be fine! I'm sure I can get him to cave!" She yelled over her shoulder.

"I don't want to disturb him! Just leave it be Thea!" The truth was Felicity hadn't seen Oliver since yesterday morning and she was afraid of what might happen. She didn't know if he would be kinder to her or if he would give her the cold shoulder again. Thea was almost at the door when Roy caught up with Felicity.

"She's not going in right? He's in a meeting with some of the other Captains." Felicity stopped suddenly and turned to gap at Roy.

"He's in a what?" She squeaked in fear. Having a Captain father, Felicity knew that meetings with all of them together was important and confidential. Lower members weren't allowed in the room, except for a few exceptions, like Felicity guessed was Diggle and at her house it was Madame Amee. Digg and Madame Amee were both advisors to the Captains of the household and often helped out in all aspects of Bratva life. However Felicity assumed that Digg preferred field work where Madame Amee had preferred paperwork and politics. Felicity had never had the privilege of attending of the meetings and she knew interrupting the meeting was most definitely not allowed.

"Thea wait!" Felicity called out, sprinting after her friend as Thea was reaching for the door knob. "Thea don't! He's in a-" Felicity was too late and came to a halt behind Thea, almost crashing into her. The whole room turned their heads to look at the two girls in the doorway. The conference table in the middle of Oliver's office was filled with Bratva Captains and although all Captains were never able to attend every meeting, there was still a significant amount of high position people in the room. Felicity gulped at their stern expressions.

"Meeting." Felicity finished lamely.

"Whoops." Thea muttered. Oliver sighed and clasped his hands together on the table.

"What is it Thea?" The younger Queen opened her mouth but Felicity quickly reached around and smacked a hand over her mouth to silence her.

"Nothing that can't wait until later." Thea sighed and rolled her eyes. She tugged Felicity's hand away and let it drop back to her side.

"Sorry for interrupting." The girls turned to leave when someone spoke up.

"Miss. Smoak? May I ask you a question?" Felicity stopped dead in her tracks, blood running cold yet filling with a fiery rage at the same time. She turned slowly on her heel and faced the man who had spoken.

Malcolm fucking Merlyn.

A man who was most definitely _not_ a Bratva Captain was sitting at the wooden conference table in between Regina Modisette, French Bratva Captain, and Klaudja Bruski, Polish Bratva Captain. He was sitting there like he belonged there, which he most certainly did not and he was looking at her like she was the gum he just found stuck under the table. With the whole room watching, Felicity knew she couldn't tear into him, especially if they _let_ him sit at the table in the first place. Swallowing her pride, she fixed a tight smile on her face, so sweet it could probably give everyone in the room cavities.

"Of course Mr. Merlyn."

"Do you know the rules of Mourning Miss. Smoak?" Felicity almost took a step back, she was so shocked by his question. He had the audacity to ask her about the rules of Mourning when he had never experienced them himself. All four of Felicity's grandparents were dead and now her father joined them. This was most certainly not the first time Felicity had gone through Mourning and she was practically a master at it by now.

"Of course I do." Felicity said, a little sharper than she might to.

"Would you mind rhyming them off for me?"

"Why? Do you need a refresher?" Felicity said, her feelings getting the better of her.

"Why are you giving the girl the third degree Malcolm?" Slade asked from across the table. "She knows the rules better than anyone."

"I'd just like confirmation of that." Malcolm said back. Felicity heard a sharp intake of breath and her eyes flicked to Oliver. She was just noticing his unhappy expression, with the visible rage bubbling under the surface.

"Might I remind you Malcolm that you are a _guest_ in this household and at this meeting and Felicity is a slightly higher ranking member than you. She doesn't have to answer your questions."

"No," Felicity said, getting everyone's attention back on her. "No, I want to answer the question, if only to prove to Mr. Merlyn that I do in fact know the rules." Felicity saw the corner of Oliver's mouth twitch at her defensive statement. He gestured for her to continue and Felicity turned back to Malcolm and began to rhyme off the rules.

"Depending on the rank of the deceased and your affiliation with the deceased, the length of Mourning may vary, and in my case that would be a month. The curtains of the household of the deceased must draw at all times, a candle should be lit every second night in honour of the deceased, a picture of the deceased must be carried at all times, all unnecessary technology must be turned off, women must have their hair tied back at all times for the first week of Mourning, social events should not be attended although special cases may arise, no bright colours, no sexual relations, no overly revealing clothing and no patterned clothes." Felicity could have patted herself on the back for remembering all that. Slade clapped three times and smiled at her.

"See Malcolm? She does know it. In fact, I'm pretty sure that sounded like it was straight from the book."

"How strange then." Malcolm said cooly.

"What's strange?"

"That you appear to know the rules of Mourning yet you are breaking them and by doing so, you are disrespecting your father." The whole room turned to Malcolm in shock from such an accusation. Felicity saw Oliver go still and she knew he must have been thinking the same thing as her.

_He knows about me sleeping in your room. Either he's jumped to conclusions or he can spin that as having sexual relations._

"What the hell are you talking about Merlyn?" Digg said from where he stood beside Oliver, coming to Felicity's defence.

"Look at her nails." He replied simply. Felicity looked down at her hands at the Midnight Magenta colour that coated her nails.

"She's wearing bright colours. Any colour that isn't black, grey, dark blue, dark purple and dark green are prohibited. She's breaking the rules of Mourning." Suddenly everyone but Digg, Oliver and Slade were looking at her like she had said she really _was_ a the gum stuck under the table. Like she was a disappointing person. Felicity locked gazes with the smirking Malcolm.

"Actually Mr. Merlyn, since it's the fifteenth of the month and my father died on the twenty sixth of last month, I have reached the end of full Mourning and I'm now in half Mourning. This means that other colours can be incorporated into my style. I thought I would start with simple dark colours." Malcolm's face fell immediately and Felicity bit the inside of her lip to keep a smug smile from sliding across her face.

"Satisfied the girl knows her stuff Merlyn?" Slade said with a smile in her direction. "Let the girl go have fun with her friend." Felicity was grateful for Slade backing her up, she felt like she had more people in her corner.

"Very well. Thank you for proving that you are in fact an honourable daughter to your father." Felicity barely acknowledged him as she left the room. Right before she closed the door however, she heard Oliver speak up.

"Now if you're done accusing the guests of my house Malcolm, you said you had information about the Triad and their links to the attempts on Miss. Smoak's life?" It took Felicity a second to register the words but she had already closed the door. Malcolm had information about the attacks? How did he get that information? And if he truly wanted her out of the Bratva so badly, why did he bring the information forward? Felicity couldn't put too much thought into it before Thea was linking arms with her and chatting about how absurd Malcolm was to ask her those questions.

 

About two hours later, Felicity was walking down the main staircase to go to the kitchen for some snacks when she stopped, seeing the Captains leaving. She plopped down onto one of the stairs and stayed hidden behind the wooden railing. She watched each of the Captains bid their goodbyes one by one until only Oliver and the Turkish Captain, Baki Remzi, remained.

"The meeting was wonderful as usual Oliver." Baki said, shaking Oliver's hand.

"Thank you."

"I wanted to ask a personal question, if I might?" Oliver nodded, giving him the 'go ahead'. "Mr. Merlyn brought up many good points at this meeting about Miss. Smoak and her residence here."

"Do you think she's not protected here Baki?" Oliver asked, a dangerous note to his voice. Baki put a hand on Oliver's shoulder and shook his head.

"No, no, of course not. That is not what I meant, my friend. Mr. Merlyn made me very curious and I have to ask, why _did_ you agree to let Miss. Smoak stay here? You _must_ be getting something in return."

"It was part of a debt to her father."

"Ah, I see. And now that Alexander is dead, is his daughter paying off his end of the debt?" Felicity's mouth dropped open in shock. She could tell what he was insinuating and she didn't like it one bit. He was just like Malcolm, jumping to conclusions and making accusations. Oliver frowned and stepped in front of the Captain.

"What are you trying to say?" He asked, a harsh cut to his voice. Baki shrugged nonchalantly, stuffing his hands into his coat pockets.

"There is no need to get angry my friend. What you do with the girl is your own business. Besides, I can see the appeal, having seen her today in the meeting, she is most attractive. I could also see that she has a fire about her. I must know, is she that fiery in bed?" Baki smiled a big, sick smile that had Felicity's stomach turning just by looking at him. Oliver's face twisted with instant rage and he shoved the Turkish man hard in the chest, hard enough to send him practically flying into the wall behind him. Felicity smacked a hand over her mouth to muffle her gasp at the roughness Oliver was displaying. Baki hit the wall hard and would have hit the ground from the force and shock of being pushed but Oliver was on him in an instant, hand closing around the man's throat, using it to keep him upright.

"How dare you speak of her like that! How dare you speak to ME like that! I swear to God if I _**ever**_ hear you talk about Miss. Smoak like that again, I'll rip-"

"Mr. Queen!" Felicity shouted as she quickly ran down the stairs and over to them. She was so afraid he would say or do something he would regret. "Mr. Queen, please stop." Oliver didn't even spare her a glance, his finger tightening around Baki's throat.

"He said-"

"I know what he said!" Felicity said angrily, doing her best to wedge her hands between them so he could push Oliver off. "I heard every vile, disgusting word," She gave the chocking man a mean glare. "But that doesn't give you the right to choke him to death. Everybody has rumours about them. Everybody gets called names. I can handle it. Mr. Queen, please let him go." Oliver frowned more and gave the man one more tight squeeze before he released him and took a step back. Baki gasped for air, gripping the table beside him for support as his other hand rubbed his sore and red neck.

"Well," He wheezed out. "I think that proves it." Felicity turned to him and spoke in a low voice.

"The only thing you proved was how easy it is to anger Mr. Queen and how nice I am about letting people live. I suggest you leave before any other vulgar words come out of your mouth and I decide to let Mr. Queen smash your skull in." The man glared at her but took her up on her offer. He left quickly, still rubbing his skin, trying to sooth the pain. Once the door clicked shut, Felicity rounded on Oliver.

"What the hell were you thinking? Oh I know! You weren't thinking at all! He's a Captain and even though you are too it doesn't mean you can go around punching anyone who says something mean about me!" Oliver stared heatedly back at her, fists clenched, chest heaving. His breath was coming harshly out of his nose and his pupils were blown wide, his thumb and forefinger rubbing together. Felicity crossed her arms over her chest.

"Are you even listening to me?" Something in Oliver's face snapped and he took quick, sure steps towards her and Felicity immediately backed up as he got close. He continued to advance on her until her back hit the wall behind her and Oliver stepped into her personal space. He smacked a hand against the wall by her head so he could lean in close. Felicity swallowed as she looked up at him, his hot breath fanning over her face. He raised his other hand to tangled into her blonde locks, gathering them up in his fist before pulling, causing her head to tip back suddenly. Felicity let out a small sound as he pulled her hair and Oliver's eyes latched onto her lips. He took a step closer, nudging one of his legs between hers.

"Do not tell me what to do. If someone ever try's to do something to you, verbally or physically, I'll tear them apart. You are under my protection. I will destroy anyone who try's to touch you." Oliver lifted his hand from the wall and placed it on the small of her back, pressing her chest into his.

"Only I get to touch you." Oliver leaned in closer and Felicity's mouth parted in anticipation, eyes fluttering closed. Oliver skipped past her face to whisper in her ear.

"Only I get to taste you." Felicity sighed as Oliver wrapped his lips around her earlobe. He sucked on it, teeth scrapping over the flesh which had Felicity scrambling for something to hold onto, to ground her. She managed to grab the loops of his belt and the action accidentally pulled him closer.

"Только я, чтобы быть над вами, позади вас, под вами, внутри вас. [Only I get to be over you, behind you, under you, inside you.]" The mental images of them being in all those positions had Felicity squirming against the wall, seeking friction against his leg. Oliver smiled and licked the shell of her ear, continuing to speak in Russian, assuming the language was what got her hot and bothered.

"Я хочу к пошел на хуй эту стену. [I want to fuck you against this wall.]" Felicity whimpered and tugged Oliver's rolling hips against hers. Oliver released her back to slide his hand down her side and leg only to inch back up her thigh under her skirt, bunching up the fabric as he went. His fingers glided across her skin, sending sparks off from wherever he touched. He dragged her leg up over his hip, unintentionally yanking her hips directly against his. They both groaned at the contact, Oliver nipping at her ear.

"Я хочу к пошел на хуй везде. На стене, на столе, на полу, на кухне, в моем кабинете, на лестнице, в моей спальне, в моей постели, в ванной комнате, в душе. Я хочу, чтобы чувствовать твою теплый кожа под моим. Я хочу, чтобы коснуться везде. Я хочу знать, что вы вкус. Я хочу, чтобы вы кричите. [I want to fuck you everywhere. Against the wall, on the table, on the floor, in the kitchen, in my office, on the stairs, in my bedroom, in my bed, in the bathroom, in the shower. I want to feel your warm skin under mine. I want to touch everywhere on you. I want to know what you taste like. I want to make you scream.]" Felicity let out a small moan, heat pooling low in her belly. She rolled her hips against Oliver and she could feel just how much she was affecting him. Felicity was sure Oliver would have kept mumbling dirty things into her ear if Roy hadn't yelled out for her.

"Felicity! You said if I let you go get a snack while I set up the movie you'd be back in five minutes! I swear, if I get downstairs and find out you're dead, I'm going to kill you. Then Mr. Queen is going to kill me for letting you go off alone." Oliver growled into Felicity's ear before pulling back, releasing the grip her had on her leg and hair.

"I had to have a talk with Miss. Smoak, she'll be up in a minute Roy." Oliver said loudly for Roy to hear upstairs. When he turned back to the blonde he caught her with a hand over her racing heart and the other tentatively touching her ear. Felicity stood there gasping, chest heaving, hair tousled, skin flushed, skirt hiked high on her leg.

"Felicity..." Oliver said gently. Felicity sucked in a breath and looked at him wide eyed, like she forgot he was there. She quickly ran her hands through her hair, patting it down before pushing her skirt straight.

"Felicity," Oliver said again, taking a step towards her with his hand reaching out. She jerked back and away from his advancing hand, pushing along the wall to slip past him.

"I need to go get some popcorn for my movie with Thea and Roy and we also need candy and ice cream and drinks and chips and-and-I need to go." She said all in one breath. She backed up and turned, running from him. Oliver stood there for a moment after she disappeared around the corner before his anger bubbled up inside him and he slammed his fist into the wall.

"Damn it!" He ran his hands through his hair roughly and sighed at himself. He just fucking blew it. After all the things they'd done and talked about and especially after his dream last night, Oliver could tell he was almost head over heels for Felicity. Only today he let his emotions get the better of his logic, of him and now he probably scared Felicity off. He pushed her too far, too fast and she was probably overwhelmed and confused and if she didn't feel anything for him then he basically forced himself on her. Again. He was supposed to protect her, not get her into bed.

_From now on, she's only part of my job. If the cold shoulder is what it takes for me to safely distance myself, then so be it._

 

Felicity walked carefully down the hallway with a tray full of popcorn and soda, and bags on her arms full of more junk food. She really tried to not think about Oliver, or how perfect his mouth felt on her. His lips only touched her ear, damn it! And she had been ready to fall apart right there. Felicity didn't know what he was thinking when he did that. Could he actually have feelings for her? Or was he all ramped up from his confrontation that he needed to take it out somehow. Felicity had experienced that before with Nikolai. After a big fight with his family or a particularly difficult mission, he would come home to Felicity, seeking something to take the end off. Dominic like to drink and party his problems away and Dimitri either went to Felicity or he took it out on a punching bag. Maybe Oliver was like them and he was simply too angry to do anything. Then again, he had said some pretty purposeful things. Although he didn't know that Felicity could understand him so Felicity decided to play it by ear.

 _Don't think about ears, never again, unless you want to feel like he's all over you again._ She scolded herself. She decided that she would see how Oliver would react to the aftermath of their confrontation, and however he reacted, she would match it. She breathed out a sigh before pushing her bedroom door open.

"Who wants a snack?"

 

*******

 

**Next!**

-Dinner with the Queen family

-Moira talks with Felicity

-Thea asks Felicity about Oliver


	9. Best Friend's Brother

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am SO sorry for the late updates and the lack of response to comments. Final exams and projects have been kicking my ass. But I'm done now so I shouldn't do another month of radio silence anytime soon.  
> This is unedited, since I wanted to get it up quick. Hope you like it!  
> -Addie

  **"Best Friend's Brother"**

 

 

I call you up when I know he's at home  
I jump out of my skin when he picks up the phone  
Why can't I tell if he's looking at me?  
Should I give him a smile?  
Should I get up and leave?

I know it's strange  
I don't know what I'm thinking  
But is it wrong  
If I see him this weekend?

I really hope I can get him alone  
I just don't, don't want her to know

_[Chorus:]_  
Yeah  
My best friend's brother  
Is the one for me  
Yeah  
A punk rock drummer  
And he's 6 foot 3  
I don't want to  
But I want to  
'Cause I just can't get him out of my mind!  
Yeah  
My best friend's brother  
Is the one for me  
BFB  _[2x]_  
My best friend's brother  _[2x]_

I kinda think that I might be his type  
'Cause when you're not around, he's not acting too shy  
Sometimes I feel like he might make a move  
Is this all in my head?  
I don't know what to do

I know it's strange  
I don't know what he's thinking  
But is it wrong  
If I see him this weekend?

I really hope I can get him alone  
I just don't, don't want her to know

_[Chorus]_

BFB  _[2x]_  
My best friend's brother  _[2x]_

'Cause he's such a dream  
Yeah  
And you know what I mean  
If you weren't related...

_[Chorus]_

BFB  _[2x]_  
My best friend's brother  _[2x]_

 

"Felicity, what is taking so long? My mom wanted us down for dinner like, five minutes ago." Thea shouted through Felicity's bedroom door.

Felicity wasn't hiding. Hiding would imply that she didn't want to be found and she therefore wouldn't be found.

Oh no, Felicity was not hiding from Oliver.

Avoiding? Hell yeah she was avoiding Oliver.

Every time she had seen him in the hallway she had proceeded to run in the opposite direction. It had gotten to the point where Felicity had holed herself up in her bedroom. She didn't really know why she was avoiding him. He might need to talk to her about what happened, maybe set her straight. All Felicity knew was whenever she looked at him now, her heart and stomach flipped simultaneously and she didn't know if the flips were good or bad. So right now Felicity was sitting on her bed, coming up with excuses that Thea wasn't buying.

"I don't feel good Thea." That wasn't technically a lie. She heard Thea huff from behind the door.

"I swear to god Felicity, if you don't open this door in two seconds, Roy and I are breaking it down." Felicity's was on her feet and throwing the door open.

"I don't want to go to dinner." Thea sighed and hooked her arm around Felicity's, dragging her down the hall with Roy in tow.

"Unless you can give me a legitimate and truthful reason as to why you shouldn't go to dinner, you're going." Felicity realized that fighting Thea was useless and let herself get pulled to dinner.

When they rounded the corner on the dining hall, Felicity saw with delight that Tommy and Sara were seated at the table. Her gaze slid across the table to see empty seats for her and Thea as while as Digg occupying a seat. Felicity didn't look at the head of the table, knowing Oliver would be there, but she did look at the other end. She saw with a small feeling of terror that Moira Queen was sitting, waiting.

"I see you finally got Miss. Smoak out of her hidey hole." She said to Thea. Felicity ducked her head and quickly rounded the table, not sparing a glance at Oliver as she sat beside Tommy. Thea took the seat across from her, sitting beside Sara. Digg was on Felicity's other side and was the only thing between her and Oliver. Raisa had the bodyguards help her serve the pre-made plates of food and pour the wine before heading back to their positions along the walls.

"Do you plan to stay for all of dinner Miss. Smoak?" Oliver asked cooly. Felicity curled her fingers into the napkin in her lap, not knowing why hearing him call her Miss. Smoak hurt so much. She could barely hear any emotion in his voice. He had slid his Bratva Captain mask into place and his cold expression made her stomach twist in the worst possible way.

"Of course Mr. Queen," She replied, trying to keep the disappointment at his behaviour out of her voice. "I wasn't feeling well but I'm better now." She saw his jaw twitch, like he was going to say more but thought better of it. He picked up his utensils to begin eating and everyone followed suit. They began to eat, everyone chatting quietly with the person beside them, laughs drifting into the air every once and awhile. Felicity kept to herself, eating silently and barely raising her eyes from her plate.

After a few minutes, Tommy realized Felicity's solemn mood. He gave her a quizzical expression but since she wasn't looking up, she didn't see. Tommy had to lean in to get her attention.

"What's wrong?" He whispered. Felicity jerked at his voice being so close and she turned her head towards him.

"What?"

"What's wrong Felicity? You seem a little down. Is it something I can help with?" Felicity pushed a small smile onto her face.

"I didn't know you could be so sincere, Tommy." He threw her a smug smile.

"There's a lot you don't know about me. You'll just have to get on my good side to figure everything out." The smile she had fell a little and Tommy's smile slipped away as he became more concerned. "What is it? What's got you so down in the dumps? Might I remind you that I have billions of dollars I can use to lift your spirits." Felicity bit her lip and squeezed her eyes closed.

"Money can't fix this problem." Tommy reached out and slipped one of his hands over top of the ones in her lap. She turned her hands over to grasp at Tommy's hand, sloppily lacing their fingers together.

"Money can't fix most problems. But I'm here if you need me." Felicity squeezed so hard she was sure she'd broken at least one of his fingers.

But Tommy squeezed back with equal force to show his support. He grabbed his wine glass with his other hand and took a sip, hoping to not draw attention to the melancholy Felicity.

 

Oliver had wanted to ask her more questions, ask Felicity why she wasn't feeling well, ask if there was something he could do. He almost asked her what was wrong, his jaw had filched with the movement of forming the words. But his brain had caught up with him and he stopped himself. Instead he bit his tongue and had begun to eat.

He was part way through his dinner, constantly sneaking glances her way. She never looked up, never joined in any of the conversations. It hurt him to see her so quiet, but if this was the best way to keep her safe, it's what he'd do.

When he looked up at one point, he nearly broke his fork in half with anger at what he saw. Tommy was leaning a little towards Felicity, one hand holding his wine to his lips, the other stretched out towards Felicity under the table. From where Oliver was sitting, it looked like Tommy had his hand high on Felicity's leg.

His hand, on her skin, that could be doing anything. Stroking her skin, or moving up and down or just moving up under her skirt. Oliver clenched his utensils as he craved his steak.

A ringing phone broke through Oliver's anger. Tommy set his fork down and reached inside his breast pocket for his phone, hand never leaving Felicity.

"Damn." He muttered. He got up quickly, letting go of Felicity and putting his phone to his ear. People went back to their conversations, Digg talking about a shipment to Oliver and Moira asking Sara more questions about her girlfriend. Felicity went back to silently eating. Oliver did his best to pay attention to what Digg was telling him but Felicity's sadness was practically radiating off her.

A minute or so later, Tommy came back into the room, standing behind Felicity's chair, hands falling to the back of it. "Sorry to dine and dash guys but an emergency's come up at Merlyn Global."

"Okay, have a goodnight dear." Moria said, a little sad. "Say hello to your father for me."

"Will do." Tommy nodded. He placed his hands on Felicity's shoulders. "Do me the favour of walking me out, Smoak?" Felicity nodded, throwing her napkin onto the table.

"Of course." She pushed back and followed him into the front hall. Oliver motioned for Roy to follow them.

Purely for her safety's sake, he tried to convince himself.

 

"Okay, we're out of the dining room and away from all the people, so tell me what's wrong." Tommy said, shrugging his coat on. Felicity signed and wrapped her arms around herself.

"I can't tell you Tommy. I'm pretty sure I'm freaking out over nothing."

"Hey." He said sternly, taking a step forward to lightly grasp her by the shoulders. "If you think you should be freaking out, then you should freak out. You have really good judgement Felicity, trust your gut. Should you be upset?"

"Yes."

"Okay then. Is it something that has to do with Oliver?" Felicity's eyes grew wide.

"What? Why would you say that?" She said in a panicked rush. Tommy frowned.

"Because it's always Oliver. Oliver manages to screw up everything he touches...wait, did he touch you Felicity? Without your consent? I know he can be rash and a little rough at times but I never thought he could sink so low as to-"

"No, no, no, Tommy," Felicity said, hands raising to his chest to cut him off. "It was nothing like that, I just-" She cut herself short, biting her lip. "I'm not entirely sure what happened and why it happened. I'd like to talk to Oliver first before telling you anything." Tommy looked skeptical but he didn't say anything else.

Instead he pulled her into a hug, Felicity sliding her hands up his chest to wrap around his shoulders. Tommy pulled back, and smiled at her. "Go talk to Oliver then. After you do I can decide whether or not I need to kick his ass."

"I don't even know what to say to him. I could feel the cold coming off of him at dinner. I don't know what he's thinking! He seems so calm but so angry at the same time-" Felicity was freaking out a little and Tommy placed his hands on either side of her face.

"Hey, sh, sh, sh," He cooed, holding her steady. "Talk to him and figure it out. I'm sure everything will be fine." He leaned in a planted a firm kiss on her forehead. Felicity closed her eyes and sighed, hands raising to hold his wrists.

"And believe me when I say that if Oliver's done anything to you, they'll be a long line of people ready to beat him up. With me and Roy at the front of the line." Tommy looked over to where Roy had been lurking. He nodded at the billionaire and Tommy let go of Felicity.

"I'll see you later Smoak." Felicity gave a little wave and turned to Roy. He walked up to her and brought her into a hug. She was a little startled at first but she looped her arms around him and squeezed.

"Whatever's happened, just know that I will most definitely fight Tommy for that first whack at Mr. Queen." Felicity smiled and let a small chuckle escape her. It was good to know they had her back.

 

Felicity was helping Raisa clean off the plates, much to the older woman's protest, and quietly shifting through her thoughts. She was so caught up in her actions and thoughts, she didn't hear someone enter the kitchen.

"Miss. Smoak?" Felicity just about dropped the dirty plate she was holding. She straightened from her position of dumping the leftover contents of the plate into the garbage.

"Mrs. Queen, what can I do for you?" Felicity set the dish in her hands on the counter.

"I would like you to join me in my office so we can have a little chat." Felicity's blood ran cold.

Something about Moira Queen and her high standards and fierce demeanour had Felicity squirming under her gaze. The woman oozed intimidation.

Moira turned and left the room, obviously expecting Felicity to immediately follow. Felicity quickly skirted around the counter and dashed after Oliver's mother, doing her best to be quiet and ladylike. Felicity assumed Moira was someone who upheld traditions and often believed that people should be prim and proper.

Moira opened the door to her office and walked inside, keeping the door open for Felicity and gesturing for her to sit in one of the plush leather chairs by a small table. Felicity sat as gingerly as possible and clasped her hands in her lap.

"Tea?" Moira asked, standing by a small China tea set. Felicity thought it was best not to decline any kind of offer from her.

"Yes please." Moira turned to the set and brought it over to the table in between them. She set the tray down and poured some hot tea into a cup, handing it to Felicity. She guessed that Moira had Raisa make a pot of tea before Felicity came up to the office. Felicity didn't take any sugar or milk, hoping to somehow speed up this conversation.

"I need a favour from you." Well, that was the last thing Felicity thought Moira would say.

"A favour?"

"Yes, I hear you are good with computers. I need you to help me delete several files off my computer, permanently." Felicity was slightly taken aback.

"That's it? Are you sure there isn't any other thing you would like me to do with your computer? You've heard that I'm good, which is a little bit of an understatement, but I can do a whole lot more good to your computer than just deleting files."

"I don't want you to simply remove them from the trash bin on my computer, I want you to eliminate any trace of the files from my systems completely. Create firewalls and seven types of security if you have to, just make sure that no one ever knows that I had the files." Felicity's knew better than to ask what were in the files or why Moira wanted them gone so badly. Felicity nodded, setting her teacup down.

"I'd be happy to get right on that." Moria looked a little skeptical.

"I heard you were good but can you really start right now? You don't need any special equipment?"

"No, I just need your computer." Moira stood and gestured Felicity over to her desk. Her laptop sat in the middle of the oak surface and Felicity sat in her office chair to start working.

She easily got into the zone, not paying attention to her surroundings. She was deleting a set of files when she saw Oliver's name. She stopped immediately and looked up, noticing that Moira was still in the same position she was when Felicity started. She had been sitting in one of the chairs, reading a book and sipping tea, for the past hour. Felicity quickly looked back to the open file, hoping Moira didn't catch her watching. She skimmed the article quickly, picking up on more names that she knew.

Thea Queen. Robert Queen. Thomas Merlyn. Malcolm Merlyn. Felicity Smoak. Alexander Smoak.

Felicity's heart sank and with a few key strokes, she was copying every file with the word "Smoak" in it onto her tablet. Once that was done she erased the rest of the files and stood.

"All done." She stated, rounding the desk. Moira checked her watch and looked impressed (if that was even possible).

"And in record time. Thank you Miss. Smoak, you may see yourself out." Felicity all but bolted for the door. She closed it carefully but sped off down the hall when she had.

She wanted to know what was in those files. She knew it was wrong but she also knew that some of those files had her name in them. She was almost to the stairs when Thea came up behind her.

"And just where do you think you're going?" Thea asked, throwing an arm around her friend and steering her back around.

"I was just-there's something I need to see-"

"Whatever it is can wait, I did some digging on you and I have a few questions to ask." Felicity's eyebrows raised in shock.

"You did some digging? What did you find?"

"Just a few articles and things about you and a few high class men." Thea managed to steer Felicity into the library and plopped her down into a chair. "So tell me all about the Count and the Kynazev boys." Felicity crossed her arms and slumped in her seat.

"Why do you care so much Thea?"

"Because I want you to date my brother and I'd like to know how well your previous relationships have gone. I also want to know why you let four rich, exclusive, _hot_ men slip through your fingers."

"I didn't let anyone slip through my fingers Thea, I chose to end our relationships. Now who do you want to know about first?" Thea scooted forward on her chair excitedly and clasped her hands in front of her.

"The Count, please. I've only ever seen pictures and read stories in the tabloids. I want to know everything about him." Felicity sighed at her friends excitement and propped her head up on her hand.

"You're in for a ride, picking him to talk about. I met Sebastian Vertigo when my parents took me to London when I was eighteen. He was twenty at the time and we met at a gala. He was a real smooth talker but looking back now, I can see all the warning signs so clearly."

"What warning signs?" Thea asked, confused.

"There were little things that he said, references that he made that would make my skin crawl nowadays. But I was young and hadn't had that many boyfriends so I didn't know any better. He was charming and fun and we spent a lot of time together the month I stayed in London. It was a week into our relationship that I realized he was _way_ into experimenting."

"Experimenting?"

"Sebastian was someone who wanted to experience everything life had to offer. He believe that in life, you could reach an ultimate high. So he tried everything he could to reach it. Boy, girls, alcohol, sex, drugs, you name it, he's tried it."

"Is that why he ended up in the hospital so many times? Experimenting gone wrong?"

"Pretty much."

"Did you ever help him reach the high?"

"Of course I tried. It was the whole reason we were together. Girls in the high class social circles knew what he was trying to achieve and if he showed interest in you, that meant he thought you were good enough. Looking back, it was all completely ludicrous. I left the relationship before he could cast me aside. I remember feeling afraid that if I actually got him to the ultimate high, he'd never let me go home."

"That's creepy." Thea said, shivering.

"Yeah," Felicity rubbed her hands up her arms.

"I know. He made my skin crawl sometimes." Thea sat back and pulled her knee to her chest.

"What about the boys? How do you know them?" Felicity laughed and tucked her legs up under her.

"I've known the boys for the majority of my life. It started when I was about six. We had to stay in Russia for a year and I quickly took a liking to the boys. The first time I met them they were playing in the pond in the backyard of their uncles house, trying to catch frogs and I was the first out of us to successfully grab one and hold onto it. The boys thought I was some sort of Disney Princess, with the ability to talk and communicate with animals. We came into the house drenched and covered in mud. We've all been friends since.

"As we got older, I developed feelings for the boys and they developed some for me. We had another stint where we lived in Russia for a year and a half and I felt like that was the right time to start a relationship with one of them. I didn't know who I liked more and each boy started to fight each other for the first chance at being with me. I promptly told them to cut out the Alpha bullshit and that I would choose which one of them I would date."

"Atta girl!" Thea interjected with a smile. "So how did you pick?"

"I simply went oldest to youngest, giving each guy a chance to "woo" me. Dominic lost interest pretty quickly after I was done with him. I think he just want to have a 'go' at me and once that was over, he didn't care anymore. He's not really a relationship type guy and I get that. So then it was down to Dimitri and Nikolai and Dimitri told me outright that he couldn't be in a relationship with me at that point in his life. He was assigned to my father while we were in Russia and he thought it'd be inappropriate. I could also tell that he wanted to focus on his job and standing in the Bratva. At that point in his life, that was more important. We tried dating later, when his life was easier but we didn't feel like it was right. So that left Nikolai and we dated for the rest of the time that we were in Russia and a little bit after me and my family left.

"We stayed together for awhile until we decided to break it off. All of us still hang out and I occasionally meet up one-on-one with the boys. Usually whenever we're around, passing each other, meeting up in different countries or at meetings. Most of the time, we meet up after our lives go to crap. But I love all of them. We're deeper than friends with benefits and I love them."

"That's..." Thea groped for the words. "Really sweet. I kinda expected a story about how the boys were all sex and no intimacy, no connections. But that's really awesome that you're all that close. Now, what about my brother?" Felicity startled at the question.

"What about him?"

"You obviously have a thing for him Felicity. You slept in his arms the other night." Felicity shook her head, somewhat cringing at the memory.

"Well I don't think that'll be happening again anytime soon."

"Trouble in paradise?"

"It's not paradise, Thea. It never was. It's... _complicated_. Your brothers been kind of... _off_ lately." Thea scoffed and sat back in her chair.

"You can say that again. I'm pretty sure everyone could feel the cold shoulder coming off of him at dinner. What was that about?"

"We had an argument. Or rather a misunderstanding. I don't know what it was but we haven't talked about it and I haven't found the courage to do so." Thea sighed and stood.

"Well, it's late and there's no point in talking to him tonight. And there's no point sulking about it either." She extended a hand to Felicity. "C'mon. You and I can go drown ourselves in Mint Chip and spend a night not worrying about Oliver." Felicity smiled at her friend, happy that Thea was someone on middle ground she could talk to. The two girls left the library arm-in-arm and made their way to the stairs.

They were almost there when they narrowly missed getting hit my a bed frame.

"What the hell?" Thea asked. The girls observed as movers walked in and out of the house carrying different items. They appeared to be bringing the contents of a bedroom into the mansion.

"Woah, who's moving in?" Thea asked, pressed up against the wall with Felicity.

"I don't know..." An item being carried into the house caught her eye. It was a brown oak vanity with a craved, swirled pattern around the mirror.

"That looks like..."

"Looks like what?" Thea said, head turning to her friend. Felicity squinted a bit and saw what she was looking for. Near the bottom drawer of the vanity, on the right corner, was a pair of swirled letters - AS - and beside them were the more legible letters - FS.

 

" _There we are Princess. All done!" Felicity's father brought her over to the new vanity he had constructed for her room._

_"It's so pretty Daddy!" The six year old said excitedly, jumping up and clapping._

_"I have something special for you to do, to make sure everyone knows this is yours." Alexander Smoak pulled out a knife and pointed to a spot at the bottom of the vanity._

_"I carved my initials into the wood because I created it. But the owner of the desk should put her initials in too, right?" Felicity nodded enthusiastically and her father let her hold the knife while he helped her to put her letters into the desk._

_"There. Finally and properly finished." Felicity beamed at her work and turn to hug her father tightly._

_"Thank you! I love you Daddy." Her father scooped her up into his arms to hug back just as tightly._

_"I love you too Princess." He looked down and took satisfaction at their initials side by side - AS and FS._

 

"It looks like my vanity." Felicity said, replying to Thea's question.

Felicity didn't understand. Why were her things in the house...

 _Oh my god._ Felicity fumed. _That son of a bitch just moved me into the mansion._

_***_

 

**Next!**

**-** Felicity and Oliver fight

-Tension (gasp!)

-Diggle thinks Oliver's a big idiot


	10. True Love

**"True Love"**   
(feat. Lily Rose Cooper)

Sometimes I hate every single stupid word you say  
Sometimes I wanna slap you in your whole face  
There's no one quite like you  
You push all my buttons down  
I know life would suck without you

At the same time, I wanna hug you  
I wanna wrap my hands around your neck  
You're an asshole but I love you  
And you make me so mad I ask myself  
Why I'm still here, or where could I go  
You're the only love I've ever known  
But I hate you, I really hate you,  
So much, I think it must be

True love, true love  
It must be true love  
Nothing else can break my heart like  
True love, true love,  
It must be true love  
No one else can break my heart like you

Just once try to wrap your little brain around my feelings  
Just once please try not to be so mean  
Repeat after me now R-O-M-A-N-C-E-E-E  
Come on I'll say it slowly (Romance)  
You can do it baby

At the same time, I wanna hug you  
I wanna wrap my hands around your neck  
You're an asshole but I love you  
And you make me so mad I ask myself  
Why I'm still here, or where could I go  
You're the only love I've ever known  
But I hate you, I really hate you,  
So much, I think it must be

True love, true love  
It must be true love  
Nothing else can break my heart like  
True love, true love,  
It must be true love  
And no one else can break my heart like you

(I love you, I think it must be love, I love you)

Why do you rub me up the wrong way?  
Why do you say the things that you say?  
Sometimes I wonder how we ever came to be  
But without you I'm incomplete

I think it must be  
True love, true love  
It must be true love  
Nothing else can break my heart like  
True love, true love,  
It must be true love  
And no one else can break my heart like you (like you)  
No one else can break my heart like you (like you)  
No one else can break my heart like you

 

  
Felicity threw the door to Oliver's office open with such force that it hit the wall. Normally, Felicity would have been worried about the damage she might have caused to the wall or the door but honestly she was so livid, she didn't care. Oliver had been sitting at his desk, sorting through folders and files as he spoke to Diggle. When the door had swung open, he had looked up to find a very angry Felicity coming towards him with a shocked Roy and giddy Thea behind her.

"Did you do it to make a point?" Felicity asked loudly, stumping up the steps to his desk. "Because I get it, loud, and clear. You're in charge, you're impulsive and you're possibly one of the most aggravating people I have ever met. And believe when I am telling you that that is saying a lot."

"Oh my god," Thea whispered happily to Roy. "She's going to tear him a new one. This is going to be so much fun to watch." She carefully slid her way closer to the action.

"You're right Miss. Smoak. I am in charge, which means I can do what I want in my house." Felicity scoffed mockingly and glared.

"You just like being in control of everything. You want to keep everything and everyone you know under lock and key. You want to keep me where you can control me. You just want me all to yourself." Oliver's jaw tightened, the air shifting as Felicity played some of her more dangerous cards.

Thea bit her lip to keep from gasping and smiling. Her brother was getting a complete knockdown from the blonde genius.

"Get out." He said lowly, raising to his feet. Felicity didn't move, refusing to leave. Oliver turned his head to Thea and Roy. "All of you, get out. Miss. Smoak and I need to have a serious conversation."

He looked over at Diggle. "You too."

"Whatever." Diggle dropped the file he had been holding onto Oliver's desk and helped Roy escort a disappointed Thea out of the room. Oliver stood there, glaring at Felicity, with his fingertips barely touching his desk.

"I don't know what you expected to accomplish, storming into my office, making unnecessary remarks-"

"What I expected to accomplish?" Felicity roared, taking a step closer to his desk. She unfolded her arms and mirrored his stance, fingers against the desktop. "I expected you to at least listen to me. To hear me when I told you to stay away from me. To answer my questions and not be the action-first-questions-second kind of guy. I get it, you're the Bratva Captain of the household, you can do what you want. But you honestly can't tell me you didn't expect some backlash from your actions. You moved me into your fracking house! Without my consent!" Oliver's frown deepened.

"I understand you're upset-"

"Upset doesn't even begin to cover it." Felicity interjected angrily.

"However," Oliver continued loudly. "This wasn't solely my decision. Your mother was actually the one who provided it." Felicity's mouth fell open in shock. She dropped her head, eyes clenched closed, trying to steady her breathing.

"You're telling me, that my _mother_ was the instigator for this entire thing. It was her idea to move me in."

"Yes."

"Why would she do that? She promised me I'd be home in a few days when I arrived and now I've been here for a couple weeks. Was this her plan all along? To send me here and keep me here?"

"No," Oliver said simply, the earlier anger slipping away. "She only wanted you to stay until the threat on your life was gone. When she realized that that wasn't going to happen anytime soon, her and I decided it would be best to permanently move you into the mansion. She wanted you to feel at home here and I wanted you to be comfortable.

"She's your mother and I'm your Captain. We didn't need your consent."

"Yeah, well, it seems like you have a history of lacking to ask for consent."

"What?" Oliver confused and a little angrier than before.

"You push me against a wall, feel me up and practically get to second base with my ear. At no time did you ask me if that was okay." Oliver's face filled with rage and he slammed his fist into the wooden desk. Felicity, shocked at the display of violence, took a step back, hands leaving the tabletop to hang at her sides.

"That is not true! I might not have gotten verbal consent but _you_ pulled me closer. _You_ held on. _You_ didn't say no or stop. I know you Felicity. If that had bothered you, then you would have said something. Don't spin this conversation around on me. You're the one throwing a fit because everyone in your life is trying to keep you safe but you're just too stubborn to realize it." Felicity folded her arms and re-erased the distance between her and the desk.

"I'm not spinning the conversation around on you. This whole conversation is about you, your rash decision making and your inability to ask other people's opinions on things. I know that people are doing everything they can to keep me safe but that doesn't mean that everyone needs to keep me out of the loop. All of you refuse to answer my questions or at least won't give me a straight answer. It's my life and my safety. You should at least have the curtesy of being honest with me."

"You want honesty? Fine." Oliver said in a clipped tone. "I think you're ungrateful. You say you realize that people are trying to keep you safe yet every chance you get, you're running head long into danger. You make stupid decisions that makes everyone's hard work redundant." Oliver began rounding the desk.

"I think you have great potential but you waste it. You don't spend your time doing anything useful. You have the chance of becoming the successor to your father, yet you act like you don't even care. You're a selfish, spoiled brat with a silver spoon in her mouth. I bet you've never worked a day in your life." Oliver came to a halt right in front of Felicity. In this position he was towering over her, asserting his dominance.

Felicity was having none of it.

"Don't you dare try and tell me I haven't work a day in my life! I've done more for the Bratva then you'll ever know. My father wanted to have people he could trust working for him. And who can he trust more than his own daughter? I've hacked into servers, computers and satellites, I've decoded messages and set up protocols and I've stolen mountains of information from the Triad without them even knowing! I bet the majority of missions you've gone on we're because of the information I'd found! Don't lecture me on silver spoons when you're the one who has one practically shoved up his ass!" Oliver stepped in closer, hand clenched at his sides.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. Everything you've gotten in your life has been dropped in your lap. Your parents money carried through the first half of your life, letting you live a care free lifestyle. Then, by some stroke of luck, you save Anatoly Knyazev's life and you're suddenly promoted from nothing to Captain. You bypassed all the hard parts. Now you get to sit on your Iron Throne and tell people what to do. Sure, you had a few years where you learned the basics and you started to mature and grow a little as a person, but really, you're just a frat boy with more power than he could possibly handle."

"I worked-"

"Worked? Worked for what? Every other Captain before you has had to work from the bottom, climbing their way up. All you had to do once you got the job was learn the ropes and earn people's respect. Everyone else had to spend years carting around luggage and crates before they were even given a _shot_ to become something more. Yeah, I bypassed some stuff too, but at least I worked. At least I was born into the Bratva. At least I was able to branch away from my family's name and get some footing for myself. If you want to talk about selfish, spoiled brats, at least recognize that you are one."

"I am your Captain," Oliver said, dangerously low. "And you have no right to speak to me that way. My decision is final. You'll be a permanent member of this household until your mother and I see it safe for you to leave. Now I suggest you leave before I come up with a punishment for you." Oliver turned away from her sharply and began to round his desk again to sit down. Felicity's mouth dropped open in indignation.

"Punishment for what? Speaking my mind?" Felicity followed after him, coming up to stand behind his rigid form. "For not backing down when you tell me to? For not doing as you say?" Oliver spun on Felicity and she almost fell back in surprise.

She would have if it weren't for Oliver. He grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her against the edge of his desk. Felicity grabbed the edge to keep from falling backwards onto the surface.

"I would punish you for being disobedient." Felicity keep her head down, refusing to look at the Captain. Oliver grabbed a handful of her blonde curls and pulled, causing Felicity to tilt her head up towards him.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you." He growled. "From now on you will do exactly what I say or you will be out of this house, without anyone to protect from the Triad. Do you understand?" When Felicity didn't answer, Oliver moved his hand from her shoulder to grab her jaw.

"Do you understand?" He said harshly.

"Yes!" Felicity gasped out, not sure if his roughness or his close proximity was making her lose her breath. Her mouth hung open to get in as much air as possible. Oliver's eyes fell to her mouth, just noticing how the close the two of them were.

"Good." They were chest to chest, one of his legs in between hers. With her head tilted up to him, they were close enough to have they noses brush together. Oliver lowered his face to Felicity's, both of them closing their eyes as his nose hit her cheek, their mouths centimetres apart. They breathed in each other's air, Oliver pushing against Felicity, keeping her firmly pushed against the desk. Felicity did her best to lift herself up to Oliver but he pulled back from her instead.

"Это должно быть моим возможность принять Вас на этой регистрации. Но вы все еще в трауре , и вы свою ответственность . Я знаю, вы не можете понять меня, но я думаю, это мой способ говорить себе из покажу вам, как много ты для меня. И я думаю, кричать на вас, и толкает вас вокруг неспособ сделать это. [This should be my opportunity to take you on this desk. But you're still in Mourning and you're my responsibility. I know you can't understand me but I guess this is my way of talking myself out of showing you how much you mean to me. And I guess yelling at you and pushing you around isn't the way to do that.]" With that Oliver released Felicity and stepped away from her.

"Please leave Miss. Smoak. I have work to do and your useless attempts at reasoning with me aren't worth my time." Usually Felicity would have fought back but his words had left her shell shocked. I guess this is my way of talking myself out of showing you how much you mean to me. Felicity wouldn't let her emotions show, especially if he wasn't supposed to know that she could understand him.

So she cleared her suddenly dry throat and pushed her hair back into place. She shook her head and turned to look at Oliver sitting at his desk.

"Fine. But don't think for a second that you're forgiven for what you did." She turned and stormed out of the office. She opened the door to find a startled and guilty looking Thea with a glass in her hand. Roy ad Digg stood off the the side bemused expressions on their faces.

"Seriously Thea? Listening in on our conversation? Really?" Thea laughed nervously and disposed of the glass on a nearby table.

"Sorry. And that wasn't a conversation, it was a fight." Felicity put her face in her hand and shook her head. She pushed her hand up through her hair and looked sternly at Thea.

"I'm not in the mood to talk about it. I'll see you at supper Thea." She pushed past the younger Queen and walked down the hall with Roy in tow, sending an apologetic glance at Thea. Thea picked up the glass dejectedly and headed to the kitchen to put it back.

Digg walked back into the office and shut the door a little harder than necessary. He crossed the office and came to a halt in front of Oliver's desk. "What is it Digg?" He asked without looking up.

"You're an idiot." He replied simply. Oliver sighed and set his pen down, closing the folder.

"People have been killed for saying nicer things Diggle. Choose your next words wisely." Digg scoffed at Oliver's authority. He sat on the arm of the chair opposite Oliver, arms folded over his broad chest.

"I don't have to do anything wisely. You chose me to be your advisor, to be the person to keep you level headed. Well, I'm telling you that right now, your head is practically hanging off your shoulders. You want to protect this girl, I get it, but I know that this isn't just a job to you. You actually care about Felicity even if you have a shitty way of showing it. I think you don't know how to handle her because you're torn between your work obligations and your emotions. I'm telling you that you're an idiot for treating this girl so miserably. You need to get your act together and decide what is more important, your temporary job or her. Because you looking after her is a job that might only last a few weeks or months but if it works out with her, you could be looking at a lifetime of happiness. Don't throw that out the window because you decide that keeping her at arms length is the best way to protect her. Take it from me. I thought keeping Lyla at arms length would keep her safe from all of this but letting her in was the best decision I ever made. Look at us, we're expecting our first child. I can tell you really care about Felicity, don't screw it up." Digg pushed off the chair and made his way out of the room, leaving Oliver with the new information to chew on.

 

***

**Next!**

**-** My dearest darling Raisa (yay!)

-Mama Smoak makes an appearance (woot woot)

-The Knyazev Brothers also show up (yas!)

-Cupcakes!

-Several people get in a fight (oh no!)

-Some people kiss and make up (aw)


	11. Somebody I Used To Know

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To all of you worried about Felicity's behaviour in the last chapter and how easily she backed down from the fight, this chapter sheds light on why she did that (insert evil grin here)

**"Somebody That I Used To Know"**  
(feat. Kimbra)

  
_[Gotye:]_  
Now and then I think of when we were together  
Like when you said you felt so happy you could die  
Told myself that you were right for me  
But felt so lonely in your company  
But that was love and it's an ache I still remember

You can get addicted to a certain kind of sadness  
Like resignation to the end, always the end  
So when we found that we could not make sense  
Well you said that we would still be friends  
But I'll admit that I was glad that it was over

But you didn't have to cut me off  
Make out like it never happened and that we were nothing  
And I don't even need your love  
But you treat me like a stranger and that feels so rough  
No you didn't have to stoop so low  
Have your friends collect your records and then change your number  
I guess that I don't need that though  
Now you're just somebody that I used to know

Now you're just somebody that I used to know  
Now you're just somebody that I used to know

_[Kimbra:]_  
Now and then I think of all the times you screwed me over  
But had me believing it was always something that I'd done  
But I don't wanna live that way  
Reading into every word you say  
You said that you could let it go  
And I wouldn't catch you hung up on somebody that you used to know

_[Gotye:]_  
But you didn't have to cut me off  
Make out like it never happened and that we were nothing  
And I don't even need your love  
But you treat me like a stranger and that feels so rough  
No you didn't have to stoop so low  
Have your friends collect your records and then change your number  
I guess that I don't need that though  
Now you're just somebody that I used to know

_[x2]_  
Somebody  
(I used to know)  
Somebody  
(Now you're just somebody that I used to know)

(I used to know)  
(That I used to know)  
(I used to know)  
Somebody

 

 

"Knock knock?" Felicity's head whipped around to see Thea standing in her bedroom doorway. "I'm sorry if I'm intruding but I wanted to know if you wanted to help me bake something? I know that sugar always makes me feel better and I can tell after your fight with Ollie, you need some serious sugar therapy." Felicity smiled and leapt up from the bed, discarding her book. The two girls walked down the hall side by side, with Roy following his bodyguard duties and trailing behind. After a moment, Felicity spoke up.

"I'm sorry about snapping at you yesterday. It's just-your brother makes me so angry sometimes and I kind of took a little bit out on you." Thea shrugged.

"It's okay. You were agitated and I was listening in on a private conversation. I was just really excited to have someone verbally bitchslap Ollie. The parts I could hear were fun to listen to, the way you didn't let him get a word in edgewise was great." Felicity smiled at Thea's encouragement of Felicity's verbal smack down. Thea looped her arm through Felicity's and set her head on her shoulder. It was a little awkward while they walked but Thea was just showing her affection.

They entered the kitchen via the servants staircase and found it to be empty. Thea ran into the walk in pantry and came out with three aprons. She handed the red pooka dotted one to Felicity, tossed the light pink one with roses on it at Roy and kept the rainbow one for herself. Roy frowned at his option.

"Why do I get the pink one?" He said distastefully. Thea shook her head at him as she tied her apron behind her back.

"Because I said so." She walked up to him and helped him with the ties of his apron. "I'm your bosses sister. What I say, goes. Besides," She said, finishing the tight bow with a harsh yank. "You look good in pink." Thea smiled brightly as Roy glared at her.

"So," Thea said clapping her hands together. "What you to wanna make? Cake, cupcakes, cookies, muffins..." "Cupcakes please." Felicity said with a smile. Thea skipped off to find the ingredients but didn't get very far before Raisa showed up. The small Russian woman cleared her throat and glared at Thea with her hands on her hips and her foot tapping at the floor.

"Oh, hey Raisa," Thea said guiltily, knowing the woman didn't like people doing stuff in her kitchen without her permission.

"What are you doing? Stop rearranging my cupboards Miss. Thea, I will find the things you need." Thea stepped back hastily, telling Raisa the treat they intended to bake. Raisa got out all the necessary ingredients and utensils before turning back to the group. "Please try to not destroy my kitchen." There was a chorus of promises before Raisa left the room.

The three of them set to work measuring and mixing then pouring the liquid mix into the cupcake tin. Thea had opted to add some food colouring to make the cakes more fun. Since the batter had already been poured into the cups, everyone set out to colour there own cupcakes individually. Roy had already mixed the ingredients together for the icing and began mixing that once he was done colouring.

When the cakes were finally in the oven, and the finished icing set off to the side, they began to lick the excess batter from the bowl. Thea decided to be a jerk and smeared some batter on Felicity's face. She scoffed in shock before scooping up some and flinging it in her friends direction.

Only Thea was fast. She dodged to cake mix, which flew past her and hit Roy.

"Hey!" The girls began to laugh and Roy scowled. "Oh, that's how it is? You wanna play? Fine." Roy scooped up some batter with the mixing spoon and catapulted at them. The girls shrieked as they became splattered with batter. Roy laughed at the shocked looks on their faces so hard he almost fell over.

"Roy Harper this is not funny!" Thea said angrily, shaking her hands to rid them of the mix.

"It is kinda funny." Roy gasped out. Thea frowned and pulled at the ends of her hair.

"You got it in my hair! Oh, prepare to pay Harper!" Thea dashed around the kitchen counter, sticking her hand in the mixing bowl on her way, and leapt on the back of Roy's retreating form. She securely wrapped her legs around his waist and proceeded to wipe her hand on his face.

"Ah!" He cried, getting the sticky sweetness in his mouth. Thea laughed as Roy tried to wrestle her off his back. The commotion caught Raisa's attention and she re-entered the kitchen.

"Miss. Thea! Mr. Roy! What are you doing? The pair froze, Thea still giggling.

"It's icing war Raisa! I had to win!"

"Of course you did Miss. Thea." Raisa said, shaking her head. "Please be sure to clean up after you are done. And once the cupcakes are done, could one of you take one to Mr. Oliver? He has been having a very rough day. Strange things keep happening and he should have something nice to eat."

"Sure, I can do that." Felicity offered. Thea dropped down off Roy's back in shock.

"Did you just volunteer to go see my brother? Of your own free will?"

"Yeah, he and I should talk." Roy and Thea looked skeptical but when the cupcakes were done and iced, Felicity was the one to take Oliver one. Felicity entered the hall to his bedroom when she realized the door was open.

"Why aren't you working God damn it?" Felicity heard Oliver's angry voice drift out into the hall. "What do you mean excess denied? That's the correct password you stupid machine!" Felicity came to stand in the doorway to watch Oliver angrily punch his security code into his laptop only to be reminded that his excess was denied. Oliver slammed his fist into the table and groaned.

"Did you get locked out of the Queen Mansion Mainframe?" Oliver's head whipped around to see Felicity standing there, one arm hanging loosely around her middle, the other hand holding the pink cupcake. "That's a shame." She finished, with no hint of caring in her voice. There was almost a smug sense to it like she knew something he didn't. Oliver connected the dots and frowned, pushing his chair back to stand.

"You did this?" He asked incredulously, taking a step towards her, his entire body tense.

"Yup." She said shamelessly, leaning against the door frame.

"And the automated lock system, that kept locking me in and out of rooms, that was you?" Oliver moving closer.

"It most certainly was."

"My alarm clock going off at one this morning?"

"Also me."

"My closet, dresser and shower filled with glitter?"

"Mmm hmm. Have fun washing that stuff out."

"My office completely wrapped in bubble wrap?"

"All of it was me. I have to say, I'm pretty impressed with myself. I wrapped your office all by myself and I even did each individual book. I was lucky you were out of the house for a little while." At this point Oliver had come to stand right in front of Felicity. She stared unembarrassed at him, showing no guilt over the pain and aggravation she'd caused him. Oliver clenched his fists and ground his teeth, blowing angry air out his nose.

"You would have had to use a computer to do some of that. You can't use technology, it's against the rules of Mourning." Felicity's shrugged and passed Oliver into his room.

"I'm pretty sure my dad would let this one slide if he was here. Him and I thought a lot alike, you know. I bet he'd be proud that I used my skills."

"He'd be proud that you used your skills to make the life of a Bratva Captain difficult?" Felicity rounded on Oliver.

"He'd be proud that I'm punishing you for being such an insensitive jerk." Felicity emphasized the word punishing, obviously mocking him for his constant use of the word. "You had this coming and you can't just push people around, especially if you have to see them on a daily basis. Just because you try and shut me out, or in my case, in, and I decide to not just take what you dish out, doesn't mean you need to get all hostile. If my safety wasn't an issue I would have left this stupid house weeks ago. But since you're keeping me from getting a bullet in the brain, I've stayed. However, that doesn't mean that you can do whatever you want! You might be a Bratva Captain and the owner of the house but it wouldn't kill you to have some manners and human decency."

"You did all of this to get back at me for what I said to you?" Oliver reached out and slammed his door closed so they could have a more private conversation.

"No, I did all of this to get back at you for your crappy behaviour." Felicity's shot back. Oliver grumbled and pinched the bridge of his nose.

This fighting was getting them and him nowhere. He decided to let all of this slide, realizing that Digg was right. He needed to regain his footing with Felicity (if he had any to start with). He swallowed his pride. "What do I have to do to make up for what I did?"

"Two things. First, I want an apology. A real, sincere apology with actual recognition of what you did wrong. Secondly, I want us to have a clean slate."

"A clean slate?" Oliver repeated, not sure he heard her right.

"Yup. I want us to start over, to act like I'm simply a guest in your house rather than the prisoner you've made me feel like. I want us to meet as Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak, not as Oliver-vicious, intimidating Bratva Captain-Queen and Felicity-sad, quiet, just-lost-my-father, and I hate this place-Smoak. Start again, totally new." Oliver nodded slowly before walking over to stand in front of Felicity where she stood by his bed. He cleared his throat and clasped his hands in front of himself.

"I'm very sorry about all the things-"

"What kind of things? Be specific." Oliver held back an eye roll and angry sigh before continuing.

"Things like-"

"No, no, no. Start again." Felicity interrupted, smug smile threatening it's way over her face. Oliver glared. She was enjoying this too much.

"Felicity," He started over, hand coming out to grab her free hand, placing it gingerly in both of his. "I am truly sorry about my rash, rude and unprofessional behaviour that I have displayed over the weeks you've been here. I hope we can mend what I have obviously broken." Felicity faked a sad face and tugged her hand away to brush away nonexistent tears, fanning her face dramatically.

"Good job, that was beautiful." Oliver didn't suppress the eye roll this time. He glanced down at the cupcake in her hand and frowned.

"What's that for?"

"This?" Felicity asked, holding the baked good higher. "Thea and I made cupcakes and Rasia said you could use a pick-me-up. I thought this could be a kind of peace offering to help us restart our relationship. Purely platonic relationship of course!" Felicity added with red cheeks. "I'm not implying that we were ever anything but platonic, except for maybe that moment in the hall-"

"So the cupcake is a peace offering?" Oliver jumped in, quickly ending Felicity's train of thought.

"Yup." She smiled at the pink confection in her hand. Oliver held a hand out to her for her to shake. Felicity was a little slow on the uptake so Oliver spoke.

"Hi, I'm Oliver Queen." Felicity smiled and shook his hand.

"Felicity Smoak. It's nice to meet you Mr. Queen."

"No," Oliver said, giving a head shake. "Mr. Queen was my father."

"Right but he's dead." Felicity flinched at her comment, pulling her hand back in embarrassment. "I mean he was killed, but so was mine, my father, I mean. I guess we have that in common, dead fathers killed by the Triad-not that that's something to compare with other people, I mean, dead people are kind of morbid-not that I wouldn't want you to feel like you couldn't talk to me about your father because I think it's morbid. Which I don't! And you don't have to talk to me about anything you don't want to-oh dear God! Could I possibly shove my foot any further into my mouth?" Felicity face palmed, cheeks flaming. Oliver chuckled and tugged her hand away from her face.

"I find your babbling endearing. Do you always talk this much?"

"No, today is actually a good day." Oliver smiled and Felicity let the embarrassment and tension melt away.

"So, how should we eat this?" She asked gesturing to the cupcake. "Should we just split it or..." Felicity trailed off in slight awe and confusion as Oliver lightly took a hold over her wrist and brought the treat up to his mouth. With his eyes on hers, he took a bite. Felicity's mouth fell open as she watched him chew then swallow, muscles contracting, tongue licking the excess icing off his lips. His eyes sparkled as he watched her over the cupcake.

"Tastes delicious." He finished cleaning his lips. "Wanna try?" Felicity nodded a bit and let Oliver helplessly push the small cake towards her mouth. She took a bite, eyes closing involuntarily as the sweetness hit her tongue. A small moan of approval at the taste escaped her throat, which had Oliver tightening his grip on her wrist.

"You're right," Felicity commented, licking her lips. "It tastes delicious."

"Бьюсь об заклад, вы бы лучше на вкус. [I bet you would taste better.]" Oliver spoke softly in Russian, moving his thumb back and forth over her skin. Felicity's throat ran dry, eyes widening ever so slightly. "You have some icing," Oliver said, eyes falling to her lips. "On you lip."

"Oh," Felicity raised her free hand to wipe her mouth but Oliver caught her wrist quickly, stilling the movement.

"I'll get it." Oliver whispered, leaning in. Felicity closed her eyes, tilting her face up to his. Oliver shifted forward and leaned further down, lips parting in anticipation of feeling Felicity's warm mouth against his again. Anticipating the thrill of kissing her fully awake and aware. Anticipating kissing her until neither of them could breathe. Anticipating feeling her warm against him and him never letting go.

Their breath mixed, Oliver's lips brushing Felicity's before shifting up to her top lip where the icing sat. Lips almost together, one more centimetre and Oliver would feel Felicity again-

The door to Oliver's room burst open, the pair jumping apart, causing the cupcake to hit the ground with a splat. The Kynazev brothers stood in the doorway and half in the room, with Felicity's mother slightly hidden behind them and their large bodies. The boys could tell what was going on and two of them, Dominic and Nikolai, marched toward Oliver.

"Get away from her!" They both shoved Oliver out of Felicity's general direction. He barely took a step back, glaring at the men.

"Hey!" Felicity said angrily. "Cut it out!" She stepped towards the boys and pushed on their shoulders to hopefully get them to back off. They didn't budge. Donna darted into the room and grabbed Felicity by the shoulders to force her to face her. She did a once over of her daughter, hands coming up to hold her face.

"Are you alright дорогой [Darling]?" She asked, voice filled with concern and a little bit of panic. Felicity's eyebrows drew together.

"Of course I'm alright mother. Why wouldn't I be?"

"The boys got an anonymous call that informed them that someone had made several attempts on your life. They called me immediately and I came over to get you as soon as I could." Donna sighed sadly, eyes filling with tears. "I'm so stupid. I thought sending you away was the best way to protect you but I was so wrong. I'm sorry about all of this Felicity. But don't you worry, you're coming home now." Felicity's eyes widened in shock and she took a step away from her mother and out of her hold.

"What?"

"I believe it'd be best if you came home and stayed safe there."

"Mrs. Smoak-"

"Shut up." Dominic said sternly to Oliver. Him and Nikolai were standing directly in front of Oliver, blocking him from Felicity.

"You don't have any say in this matter. You served your purpose. Face it Queen, you couldn't keep Felicity safe."

"But he did." Felicity said, jumping to Oliver's rescue. "Mr. Queen's the one who save me from both my assailants. If it wasn't for him, I'd be dead."

"It doesn't change the fact he was the one who let both assailants slip past his guard and into his home." Dimitri came up to stand near Donna, hands in his suit pant pockets. "We're going to take you home and the three of us will help watch over you." He added reassuringly.

"What if I don't want to go home? What if I feel safe enough here?"

"You don't need to take Felicity away Mrs. Smoak." Oliver said overtop of the heads of the boys in front of him. "I've been protecting her, keeping a close eye on her."

"Oh I bet you have." Nikolai said sharply, getting right up in Oliver's face. "We've heard about you Queen and might I say I'm very disappointed in your behaviour. I was told you always put your job first but it seems that here you've become a little too close to your job. Listen to me, and listen to me good. It'll be a cool day in Hell before you add Felicity to the growing list of notches on your bedpost."

"Nikki!" Felicity yelled incredulously.

"What did you just say to me boy?" Oliver growled, going chest to chest with Nikolai.

"You heard me. Felicity's like family, so don't you come near her again."

"Thanks funny," Oliver said mockingly. "I thought you weren't supposed to fuck your family Nikolai."

"Mr. Queen!" Felicity said, mouth gaping open. She was honestly so disgusted by attitude of the men in the room, she didn't know how to express it.

"Don't talk to me about bed posts Knyazev, when you've probably added Felicity to yours more times than I'd like to count." Nikolai surged forward, grabbing a fist full of Oliver's dress shirt.

"Я собираюсь разорвать вашу голову от вас- [I am going to rip your head off you-]"

"Wait!" Everyone froze at the panicked voice and turned to look at Donna. She stood stark still, with her hands raised in a stop signal. She paused for a moment, thinking, before turning towards Oliver and Nikolai.

"As much as I love to hear about my daughters sex life," She said sarcastically. "Am I understanding you right Nikolai? You believe Mr. Queen has a thing for my daughter?"

"I don't think, I know!" Nikolai snarled, letting go of Oliver with a harsh shove. "We've seen the way he is with her, touching her arms and back, a little longer and lower than he should. And just now I'm pretty sure if we walked in a little later than we did, we might have caught him kissing her." The information took a second to sink in before Donna marched towards Oliver.

"That's my daughter, you son of a bitch! You're supposed to protect her, not sleep with her!" Donna brought her arm back so fast, no one had time to realize what she was going to do before she slapped Oliver across the face with a resounding ' _crack_ '.

"Oliver!" Felicity said in shock and concern before slapping her hands over her mouth, like the action could somehow take back the error she just made. Donna and the boys slowly turned their heads to Felicity, Donna straightening.

"Oliver?" She asked, completely horrified by her daughter. "Oliver?" She repeated, loudly and angrily. "You're on a first name basis with a Bratva Captain? Then what Nikolai says must be true."

"You're screwing him." Dominic finished Donna's sentence for her.

"I'm not!"

"Don't lie to us Felicity, I've seen the way you look at him." Nikolai said, taking a few steps towards her. Felicity scowled and faced off against the group.

"And how exactly do I look at him? With heart eyes? Like a dimwitted school girl with a crush?"

"Like you used to look at me." Felicity almost took a step back at the blow Nikolai delivered. It was true that at one point in her life, she had been in love with Nikki. For the year and a half while they dated, she had been in love with him and they had been almost perfect.

But they had fallen apart like she had done with the other brothers. Sure, she loved them all equally now but there was a time when Felicity would look at Nikolai with such love, admiration and longing it would floor him. And now she was finding out that that was apparently how she looked at Oliver.

"I never had sex with Mr. Queen." She said coldly.

"Don't lie to me." Donna placed her hands on her hips, her signature motherly stance.

"I'm not! Even if I wanted to do you think I would have such a disregard for Father that I'd break the rules of Mourning just to fuck someone?" She shouted at them, not regretting her words even when the pain washed over Donna's face.

"Fine." She said, tone clipped. "I believe you haven't gotten into bed with Mr. Queen, but that doesn't mean you can stay here. This.. _thing_ , that's going on between the two of you is more reason to take you home."

"That's not fair! You're not even listening to me, I'm safe here!"

"It doesn't matter, you'll be safe at home!" Donna yelled back. She sighed and placed her head in her hand. "I thought you were smarter than this Felicity. The people who are allowed to date and marry Bratva Captains are either other Captains or they get someone who was picked by a member higher than them. Bratva Captains can sleep with whoever they want Felicity. He might have slept with you eventually but it wouldn't have meant anything to him." Donna said sadly.

"That's a lie!" Oliver roared, stepping towards Donna but finding his path blocked by Dominic and Nikolai. "Don't you dare make assumptions about me Mrs. Smoak. You might be allowed to dictate Felicity's life but you have no right to tell me what I think."

"She doesn't even have the right to dictate my life." Felicity spat. "I'm not a minor Mother, you can't tell me what to do."

"Don't fight me Felicity. I know what's best for you."

"I'll never stop fighting. I want to stay here." Donna sighed again and waved her hand.

"Dimitri." She said simply and suddenly Felicity found herself being dragged out of the room with Dimitri pulling her by his firm grip on her forearms. She thrashed back and forth, trying to get away.

"Dimitri let go!"

"We're keeping you safe." He said calmly.

"Felicity!" Oliver called out, trying to push past the Knyazev men. When he couldn't, he tried to reason with her mother. "Donna don't do this!"

"I'm keeping her safe, which is more than I can say for you." She shot back bitterly. "I trusted you to protect her and instead you try and get her into bed. You didn't tell me about these attacks when you should have. You selfishly kept the information to yourself so you could keep Felicity here. I should have never let you near her." Donna turned and walked out of the room to follow Dimitri and Felicity. The other boys were successful in keeping Oliver where he was.

"Donna listen to me! Please don't do this! She's safe here! Donna!" Oliver pleaded desperately. Donna didn't pay him any attention as she walked into the hall.

"Let me go!" Felicity twisted and pulled, trying her best to free herself. She had no leverage to get a blow in to escape and she wasn't getting very far with thrashing around.

"Felicity stop struggling." Donna said impatiently. "You're acting like a child. I'm doing this to make sure you live."

"Hey!" Diggle's loud voice shouted from up the hall as he and Roy stood from it's opening. "What do you think you're doing?" He asked, not having a full view of the situation from where he stood.

"Digg help!" Felicity cried out, tears burning behind her eyes. "They're taking me away! I don't want to leave!" Digg and Roy sprinted up the hall the second they heard Felicity's panicked voice. They reached the situation quickly, both of them yanking Felicity out of Dimitri's grasp. She slumped against the wall, away from Dimitri and her mother.

"Do you know who I am?" Dimitri asked like they were stupid. "I'm taking Felicity home, you can't stop me." He said angrily. Digg placed a hand on the man's chest, keeping him in place and sizing him up.

"I can't allow you to do that. The only man I take orders from is Mr. Queen and you sure as hell ain't him. Until he tells me Miss. Smoak is free to leave, she's not going anywhere." Dimitri's lips curled back in a sneer and he looked past Digg and Roy at Donna.

"Take Felicity home Donna, the boys and I will take care of Mr. Queen and his men."

"I'd like to see you try." Roy snarled, getting up close with the older Bratva member. Donna grabbed her daughters arm but unlike the boys, she was easier to get away from. Felicity snatched her arm back, stepping away.

"Don't touch me. You're my _mother_. You're supposed to have faith in me. Instead you're jumping to conclusions like every other God damn person that's seen me and Oliver so much as standing next to each other. Listen to the words coming out of my mouth. I. Am. Staying."

"I want you to live!" Donna shouted. "Don't you get that? If you stay here, you might die and I won't have been around to protect you. At least at the house you'll be with me. And I can keep you close and safe. I can especially keep you away from that horrible Bratva Captain trying to take advantage of you." Donna grabbed Felicity's arms and pulled her but Felicity used her weight to pull and lean away. Donna held fast however and tried dragging her down the hall while Digg and Roy argued with Dimitri.

That's when it hit Felicity.

They were succeeding in taking her away from Oliver. It wasn't even the thought of being away from Oliver that freaked her out, it was more of how she felt around him. Safe. Oliver was one of the few people that made her feel completely safe while she was around him. She didn't know if it was because he saved her that first night in the mansion or she knew that he would do whatever it took to keep her safe and alive or if it was because of her feelings for him but he made her feel safe.

Now her mother and the Knyazev Brothers were going to take that away.

That calm feeling of being safe.

Felicity had so closely associated Oliver with being safe that the thought of her forever being away from him had her shaking with fear. Her mother was taking her out of the mansion, out of her new safe zone. She could be attacked or assaulted or killed.

She wasn't safe.

Felicity began to panic, a wave of nausea rolling through her and settling in her gut. Her shaking increased with all the conflict and yelling and movement around her. Her vision blackened around the edges, her thoughts jumbled yet clearly thinking one thing.

_I'm not safe._

Her throat closed in panic, chest tightening in fear, breathing becoming extremely difficult. Her legs gave out and her knees slammed into the ground, hard. She was vaguely aware of someone screaming when she realized it was her. Hands over her ears, trying to lessen the sound of blood rushing through her ear drums, Felicity screamed out for Oliver. His name ripped from her throat with whatever oxygen she could fine.

"Oliver!" At the sound of Felicity screaming for Oliver, everyone stopped fighting each other. With combined concern, Oliver, Dominic and Nikolai raced out of the bedroom to find Felicity on her knees, screaming, hands tightly pushing against her ears. Oliver hastily pushed past the men, shoving them out of his path and fell to his knees in front of Felicity.

"Felicity? Felicity can you hear me?" She looked up at him, staring at him with wide, frightened eyes, like he had all the answers. She didn't stop screaming, it was like she couldn't help herself. Like screaming was making everything okay while simultaneously making it worse. Oliver lightly wrapped his fingers around her wrists and spoke softly to her.

"It's okay Felicity. You're fine. I'm here. It's all okay. You're safe. I won't let anyone hurt you. Just breathe. You're okay. You're safe. I'm safe. Everything is fine. You're safe. You're safe." Oliver turned his head toward where Roy and Digg stood.

"Roy, go to her room and get her anxiety medication. Find it, quickly!" Roy took off like a shot, collecting Thea at the end of the hall, who had been attracted by the screaming, to help him. Oliver turned his attention back to Felicity.

"You're safe. Breathe. It's okay. We're all okay. You're safe. It's safe." Out of the corner of his eye, Oliver saw Nikolai take a step towards them. Oliver whipped his head towards him in a flash, growling.

"Don't you dare come any closer!" Nikolai froze. "She panicking because of all of you. You didn't listen to her. Felicity panics when she doesn't feel safe and being told that you're removing her from a place she's felt safe in for the past three week is scaring her. She doesn't feel safe because of all of you. So stay the hell away before you make it worse." Oliver turned back to Felicity, tugging her hands away from her ears, which had Felicity scrambling for something to hold, lacing her fingers through one of his hands, the other grabbing a fist full of his suit.

"Breathe with me Felicity. You're fine. You're safe. I'm here. Breathe for me Felicity. I need you to breathe. C'mon, breathe." His free hand came up to cup her face.

 

Roy and Thea sped down the hall and rounded into Felicity's room. They started pulling open drawers and looking through bags and boxes.

 "Where did she have her medication last?" Roy asked, shuffling through her cabinet behind her bathroom mirror.

"It was in her bedside table but it's not there anymore."

"Well then where is it?" Roy shouted angrily. Thea stopped what she was doing and glared at him across the bed.

"I don't know! Don't yell at me!"

"I'll yell if I want to yell because our friend, the girl I'm supposed to be looking out for is having a panic attack and you're not being helpful!" Roy shouted back at her. Thea opened her mouth the yell back when she spotted the orange bottle on the bookshelf.

"It's right there." Thea said exasperated. She stomped over and snatched up the bottle. She tossed it at Roy. "Let's go."

 

Though it was a struggle, Felicity managed to calm her breathing until she was no longer screaming, her vision returned and the nausea disappeared.

"You're safe Felicity." Oliver said, pulling her back to Earth, grounding her, thumb brushing across her face. As peaceful as he made her feel, reality had a shitty way of creeping up on you.

"Oh God!" Felicity gasped out, eyes swimming with tears. "Please don't let them take me away." She sobbed out. "Oh God, please Oliver, I don't want to go!" Oliver's hand slipped around to cup the back of her neck and he pulled her against him, head falling into the crook of his neck. He untangled their fingers to wrap his arm around her, pulling her close.

"It's okay," Oliver said into her hair. "I've got you. I'm not letting go Felicity, I promise. They'll have to pry you out of my cold, dead hands." Felicity tightened her grip on his jacket and curled into him.

"Please let me stay. I feel safe here."

"You're not going anywhere. I've got you. You're safe with me." Donna took a step forward, ready to separate them when the boys got in her way. They could see how much Oliver really cared for Felicity. There was a connection that definitely wasn't the same as the one she had with them. This one was deeper, more understanding.

"Leave her alone Donna. We made a mistake. Felicity is more than safe here and I don't think Oliver is trying to take advantage of Felicity."

"He's a ruthless Captain." Donna argued. "Of course he is!" The boys looked back at Oliver cradling Felicity against him, whispering soothing words to her.

"Give it a rest Donna, she's safe and happy here. We shouldn't take her away from that. C'mon, we should leave, let Felicity be in peace. We can come back later, after she's calm and maybe forgiven us." The men ushered Donna away and down the hall, narrowly missing Thea and Roy as they ran back to the group.

"She's okay?" Roy asked Digg, pill bottle in hand.

"It seems like it, yeah." Digg knelt down next to the pair and put a hand over Felicity's. "They're gone Felicity. You can stay." She breathed out a sigh of relief and Oliver helped her stand. He kept his arm around her, having her anchored to his side. Felicity pulled back, wrapping her arms around herself. Oliver placed his hands on her shoulders.

"Do you want to go for a walk?" Felicity's head whipped up so fast she was surprised she didn't get whiplash.

"What? I thought I wasn't allowed to leave the mansion."

"You've been through a lot and I think the fresh air will calm you down. Roy and Digg will go with you and I'll tell the extra guards to watch you from a distance." Felicity smiled despite herself and nodded.

"I'd like that, thank you." Oliver raised his hand to cup her cheek momentarily before heading in the direction of his office. Digg guided Felicity down the hall but Thea held Roy back.

"I just need to talk to Roy for a minute, he'll be out soon." Digg gave a sharp nod at the information and Thea waited to speak to Roy until everyone was out of sight. "Do you want to explain what happened earlier?"

"What's there to explain Thea? I got angry with you. If you got to know me you'd find out I have quite a temper."

"What do you mean if I got to know you? We're friends and you only got here a little while before Felicity. I'm trying to know you!" Thea said, throwing her hands in the air.

"While I guess it seems I don't know you so tell me. Why did you yell at me?"

"Because I was panicking!" Roy yelled. "I should have accompanied Felicity upstairs rather than stayed in the kitchen with you. It was selfish and maybe if I had been upstairs when her mother arrived, she wouldn't have had a panic attack. That's on me."

"No it's not!" Thea said taking a step closer. "Every bad thing that happens to Felicity is not your fault. Stop beating yourself up over nothing! I know you take your job seriously because you're so much younger than the others but you don't have to prove anything to me or Felicity or Oliver! We already like you! You're not going to lose your job."

"Yes I am!" Roy shouted. "It might not be because I let Felicity out of my sight but it's because of why I let her out of my sight."

"What?" Thea asked, crossing her arms over her chest, confused.

"You, Thea. I let my guard down when you're around, I don't pay attention to my job when you're around. I shouldn't even be friends with you in the first place because it puts Felicity in danger. I could lose my job because of how I feel about you." Hurt and anger flashed across her face. She bowed her head, biting her lip and breathing out slowly.

"So you're saying it's my fault." She said to him, voice raising. "You could lose you job because of me."

"Yes!" Roy shouted, getting in her face. They both said nothing for a moment until Thea slapped him. Roy exhaled in surprise before Thea slapped him again. He turned his head back to face her and she raised her hand again but Roy caught arm before she could strike him again. Thea yanked her arm out of his grasp.

"You're right." Thea spat coldly. "I guess I don't know you." She turned on her heel angrily and walked away from him. Roy reached out and caught her wrist at the last second. He spun her back around to face him and saw her face, set in stone, with tear filled eyes.

"Thea..." Roy said softly, regret filling his voice. He yanked on her arm, pulling her against his chest and kissing her soundly. Thea brought her hands up to frame Roy's face as he splayed his hands across her back, mouth opening to her.

Roy turned and spun them into the wall. Roy's hands ran over her back, grabbing her waist and pulling her tightly against him, while Thea wrapped one hand around to the back of his neck. She licked his lips, moaning as she wrapped her leg around his. After a moment, Thea pulled her lips away and Roy start to kiss her jaw when she stopped him.

"Roy," His name brought him out of himself and he stepped back hastily. He ran his hand through his hair before grimacing.

"I'm sorry Thea, I shouldn't-" Thea stepped up and kiss him softly.

"Save it Abercrombie," She mumbled against his lips. "We'll talk about this later. Right now you need to go help Felicity."

"Thea..."

"Go do your job." Thea prompted, stepping back. "I'll see you later." She said, end of discussion, as she walked away.

 

***

**Next!**

-The Triad make an appearance! (Oh no!)

-Ultimate Protective Oliver Mode Activated (yas!)

-More Theroy

-More Olicity

-Someone gets the shit beat outta them! (Oh no! Who could it be?)


	12. The Violet Hour

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! So sorry about the late update! Things happen.  
> Anyway, to get this chapter up faster, some of the things that were meant to be in this chapter have been moved to the next chapter (such as over protective Oliver mode and Theroy)  
> BUT I have some sexy Olicity times to make up for that!  
> I also choose to have a classical piece by the Civil Wars as my inspiration for this chapter as you will note there are no lyrics at the start of the chapter. The piece starts off calm but near the end it gets a little dark and uneasy.  
> Hugs!  
> -Addie

"Well, I think I speak for everyone when I say that this is the last place I expected to be on this fine Wednesday morning." Dominic said from where he sat with his brothers in front of Oliver's desk. Oliver looked up at him over his clasped hands which he lowered to the desk's surface.

"I will admit that you three are probably the last people I would like to have in my house but you have important information regarding Felicity and her safety. I know you received a phone call from an anonymous source and I'd like to learn everything about that phone call. I believe whoever called you was the person behind all of Felicity's assassination attempts."

"What makes you think that?"

"It's simple really. If they called you, you would inform Donna and she would want to protect Felicity herself. Donna's motherly instincts would get Felicity removed from the house, where she would be easier to kill." Oliver explained. Dimitri rubbed his temples with his thumb and forefinger, groaning.

"How could we be so stupid? We could have gotten her killed!"

"That's exactly why we're having this conversation, to ensure that something like this doesn't happen again. What can you tell me about the caller?" The brothers looked at Nikolai, who was the one who had received the call.

"Whoever it was used a voice modulator so I couldn't tell you if the caller had an accent or if it was a man or woman. I remember thinking that it was really strange and I didn't believe the caller at first when they claimed Felicity was in immediate danger."

"What changed your mind?" Diggle asked from his position behind Oliver's chair.

"The person described in detail the party you held for Felicity a couple weeks ago. The person claimed they were a member of staff here that thought it wasn't safe for Felicity anymore. That's why I didn't question the voice modulator because if I could tell who they were, I could have you fire them for meddling in business they had no say in."

"Is that all you can tell me about the call?"

"Unfortunately yes. However, we do keep copies of all of our phone conversations, we could have someone send it to you." It was very common for the homes and businesses of Bratva members to record all phone conversations. It helped with investigations, whether it was ransom demands or threatening calls, to have records they could review and scrub through.

"That would be very helpful, thank you." Oliver said callously. "That is all that I wanted to discuss. Now, and I mean this in the nicest way possible, get out of my house." The brothers stood, understanding that they were no longer welcome. As they made their way to the door, with Digg shadowing them the whole time, Nikolai slowed.

"I know you wish for us to leave but, may we speak with Felicity?" Oliver was about to reply when Roy entered the room cutting him off.

"No." He said sharply, glaring at the men. "I'm sorry for interrupting sir," He said to Oliver. "But may I?" He asked, gesturing to the brothers. Oliver nodded, the smallest hint of a smile showing at the corner of his mouth. "No, you may absolutely _not_ speak with. You scared her, picked her up and tried to _drag_ her away from the place she had called home for almost a month. She doesn't want to see you. She doesn't want to talk to you. Hell, she doesn't even let us _try_ and talk to her about the three of you. You three were supposed to be her friends, to listen and side with her. Instead you acted like complete jackasses. So give Felicity her space and get the hell out of our house." Roy finished hotly, anger painting his features.

"Are you going to let him talk to us like that?" Dominic asked, not believing Oliver was letting a bodyguard shout at the nephews of Anatoly Knyazev.

"Yes because I think he just summed up everything I was going to say." Oliver said with a tight, fake smile. Digg stepped up and motioned to the door, signalling that it was time for the men to leave. After the door closed, Roy turned to Oliver.

"What's my punishment?"

"What?"

"I just yelled at three of the most important members of the Bratva." Roy stated.

"And it was so much fun to watch." Digg said approaching them, smile brightening his face.

"You're not being punished Roy. If anything you're being congratulated." He clapped a hand on Roy's back then exited the room.

"Okay," Roy said, slightly confused. "So, _"great job Roy, you yelled at the Knyazev Brothers"?_ " He asked Digg.

"Yeah, they had it coming. Good job."

 

Felicity sat at the kitchen counter, angrily shooting whipped cream over a bowl of strawberries.

Felicity wasn't angry to begin with. At first she had been upset and felt a little betrayed. The people she had grown up knowing her whole life had completely ignored her and her opinion and tried to forcibly remove her from the mansion. Now Felicity didn't know who to trust, didn't know who was more loyal to her, didn't know who might turn their back on her at some point.

And that scared her. How could she fully trust someone if they only ended up stabbing her in the back? She was sure she could rely on the occupants of the Queen Mansion, they all seemed friendly and trustworthy. Things were easy with them, all of them kind and understanding.

Even with Oliver, things were getting better. Ever since they hit the restart button, they've been more laid back and relaxed. It was easier to talk to him and that made Felicity very happy. Why had he been so off putting around her before, Felicity might never know. But she was hoping she could figure that out with him. However, could they ever really try and make some kind of romantic relationship work? Felicity stared at the fruit in her head, pondering that question.

"Hey." Oliver's voice sounded from in front of Felicity. She jumped in surprise, almost dropping her strawberry into her jean short clad lap.

"Don't you knock?" She asked as he strode forward to lean against the counter.

"Felicity, this is the kitchen. It's not the ladies room." Felicity blushed at her own foolishness and popped her snack into her mouth. "Are you okay?"

"Hm?" Felicity asked, mouth full.

"When I came in you were looking at the fruit like it held all the answers to your questions." Felicity swallowed tightly and sighed.

"I'm just a little upset over what happened a week ago. I know it sounds stupid that it's been more than a few days and I'm still stewing over this but-"

"Don't." Oliver said sternly. "You have every right to be upset. Your family didn't trust you. It's a hard thing to get over when the people you love don't listen to you." Felicity fiddled with her fingers in her lap, not looking at him.

"Thanks. I'm just trying to work through everything."

"With strawberries and whipped cream?" Oliver asked, a lighter air to his tone. Felicity laughed nervously and tucked some hair behind her ear.

"I stress eat. When I first came here I ended up eating all of the mint chip out of your freezer." Oliver pushed off the counter suddenly, standing directly in front of her. He placed one hand on the seat of her stool and the other flat on the counter, caging her in. He leaned in close, having Felicity lean back a bit.

"That was you? You ate all of my mint chip?" Oliver spoke in a dangerous tone, intimidating her with his height. Felicity gulped.

"Yes, I'm really sorry! If I had known it was specifically yours or if you were saving it or something then I would have-" Oliver shook his head at Felicity, tsking, which had her shutting up.

"Do you really think words and apologies are going to help you at this point? There is justice to be served Felicity." Oliver leaned in closer, his thighs pushing on her knees. "I'm going to make you pay."

Felicity heard the sound first and before she could comprehend what was happening, her vision became blurred with whipped cream. Oliver laughed as he spread the sugary goodness over Felicity's forehead which, thanks to gravity, fell over the rest over her face. Felicity let out an indignant cry before wiping the cream off her face. Oliver stepped back laughing, can still in his hand. Felicity hopped off the kitchen stool, hands filled with whipped cream.

"Oliver Queen, wipe that grin off your face!"

"Or what?" Oliver challenged, raising his whipped cream can higher. Felicity let out a yell, jumping at him while throwing the cream in his face. Oliver laughed and squirted more cream over Felicity's front as she chased him around the counter.

It wasn't until the whipped cream can was empty that Felicity got the upper hand. She shoved Oliver against the fridge and wiped her sticky, messy hands all over his face and shirt. Once her hands were mostly clean, she stepped back to enjoy her work. Oliver stood propped up against the fridge, cream sliding down his face and onto his heavily breathing chest. He ran a hand through his hair, only succeeding in smearing the whipped cream over the top of his head. Oliver looked at Felicity, hair and face equally as messy, with whipped cream sliding down her ample chest, some disappearing below her shirt. He looked back up to her face to find a smile gracing it as she admired her handy work.

"So," She said, placing her hands on her hips. "What now?" Oliver surged forward, hands coming up to frame Felicity's face as he pressed his lips against hers. She gasped in surprise, mouth opening to meet Oliver's insistent tongue. Her hands reached up to fist in the fabric of his shirt, pulling him firmly down against her. One of Oliver's hands glided across her skin, resting at the base of her skull, holding her close.

Their lips slid together, wet and warm, testing and tasting, nipping and nibbling, as they gaged the others reaction. Their lips were both sweet with the taste of the whipped cream, adding an extra thrill as they sucked it off of each other.

Oliver turned them on the spot, pushing Felicity against the fridge. She broke the kiss with a gasp as her back came in contact with the cold surface. Oliver shifted, hands trailing down her sides to rest on her hips as he pressed kisses to her neck, sucking and licking the cream off her skin.

"Oliver..." Felicity breathed into his ear, nails scraping through the short hairs on his head. He shivered against her, mouth secured to her shoulder. His hands spread across her hips and around to her back, one resting on the small of her back while the other grabbed the ends of hair, tugging her head back, giving him more space to work with. Felicity's head tipped back, chin to the sky as she rolled her hips against Oliver's. Felicity groaned as Oliver nipped at her shoulder, biting the juncture where her neck and shoulder connected. He impulsively rolled his hips into hers, causing friction that both of them appreciated, forcing moans out of the two of them. Felicity lifted her leg over Oliver's, seeking more movement, more friction to help her. Understanding what she needed, Oliver pulled himself off her shoulder and looked down at the with half lidded eyes as he moved his hands from her back to her naked thighs, lifting her up. Felicity tightly wrapped her legs around Oliver's waist, hands grasping at the back of his neck. Oliver rolled his hips, his hard, clothed length pushing directly against Felicity's heat.

"God yes," Felicity muttered, meeting Oliver thrust for thrust.

"Oh god, Felicity-" Oliver choked out, banding an arm around her back to giving him more leverage, his other hand gripping the stainless steel surface Felicity was pressed against for balance. Felicity yanked Oliver down for a desperate, sloppy kiss as her heat pooling low in her belly increased with each thrust Oliver did against her. The kiss was teeth and tongue and completely uncoordinated.

"Felicity," Oliver muttered against her lips. "Wake up." Felicity dragged her lips away from Oliver's in surprise, the two words poking through her lust fogged brain. Oliver kissed across her jaw, taking her earlobe into his mouth when he got to it. Teeth scraping across the sensitive flesh, he spoke again.

"Wake up Felicity." He breathed into her ear. "C'mon, wake up." Oliver thrust particularly hard into Felicity as if to punctuate his words, the denim of his jeans spiking a shot of pleasure through Felicity's body as it rubbed against her gradually damping shorts. Felicity cried out, head falling back with a thud against the fridge door.

"Wake up Felicity. It's just a bad dream. Felicity. Wake up."

 

Felicity sat up with a gasp, almost falling out of the large library chair she was occupying. Two large hands had a hold of her shoulders, keeping her in her position.

"Hey hey, it's okay, it's just me." Felicity rubbed her eyes and realized that her glasses were in fact not on her face. She fumbled around for them before the person in front of her lightly took ahold of her chin and slipped her glasses on for her. Oliver's smiling face came clearly into view and Felicity sighed in relief.

"You're okay. It was just a bad dream."

"What?" Felicity asked, still groggy from her nap. "You were moaning in your sleep, I got worried. But it was just a dream Felicity."

Felicity felt like smacking him. Yeah it was just a dream. An awesomely sexy dream about him shoving her up against kitchen appliances to have his way with her. And if Oliver hadn't mistaken her moans of pleasure as moans of distress, she would probably be having a fantastic dream orgasm right about now. Felicity couldn't wait for Mourning to be over, she hadn't had a real orgasm in over two months and it was starting to get to her, her amorous dream being case and point.

"Was there something you needed?" Felicity asked, untucking her legs and setting her feet on the ground.

"I just finished a meeting with the Knyazev boys." Felicity scowled at the mention of their name, fingers digging into the chair cushion. Oliver sighed. "I know none of them are on good ground with us right now but I had to talk to them."

"Why?" Felicity said sharply. "Why did you have to talk to the men who decided to throw seventeen years of trust and friendship out of the window and tried to drag me out of this house? Who ignored my opinion and my choices? Who basically made me feel helpless as they carried me down the hall? Who threatened people I care about?" Felicity argued angrily, voice rising.

"Hey, woah," Oliver put his hands on her shoulders, calming her. "I know they did all those horrible things but they had information I needed. The person who called them is the person behind your attacks. I just wanted to verify my suspicions and I wanted our discussion done in person. I'm sorry but it had to be done." Felicity nodded, blinking her glassy eyes.

"Yeah, no, I understand." She looked up at Oliver and paused for a moment contemplating something. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course." Oliver moved to sit on the edge of the coffee table, his knees hurting from kneeling.

"I'm only asking this because you and the boys have the same values. You're all high ranking members of the Bratva, you all think alike and I don't want to talk to them so I'm asking you so I can get an answer without having to look them in their stupid faces-"

"Felicity. The question?"

"Oh, right. Why do you think they did it? Why do you think they acted the way they did?"

"Because they love you." Oliver replied without hesitation.

"Some love," Felicity muttered.

"Felicity," She looked back up and found Oliver staring intently back at her. "Someone once told me, that love is the most powerful emotion. It can make people do unspeakable things. Lie, cheat, kill. It can make people give up everything or sacrifice themselves for another person. The brothers judgement was clouded by the thought of something horrible happening to you. They thought that if you stayed here, it would mean your death. That was their motivation and their fault."

"How can someone do that? Let their love for me be the thing that clouds their judgement so much that they're completely blind to the consequences?" Oliver rubbed a hand over his mouth, preparing himself before he spoke.

"The first person I ever killed was to save my sister." Felicity's mouth almost dropped open in shock. It wasn't shock over the fact that Oliver had killed someone to save Thea, but rather that he was opening up to her.

"His name was Gavriil, the кабан, the Boar," He clarified for Felicity who "didn't" know Russian. "He was known for his wild nature, having a disregard for people and believing that if he wanted something, he was untitled to it. He was hated by many members of the Bratva because of his attitude and vile tongue towards many of the wives and daughters of the Bratva. His ruthlessness and take-no-prisoners attitude however were qualities that members applauded him for. He was a valuable member and people simply made sure that whenever he came over to their houses for meetings or parties, the females of the household would be gone for the time he was there. Some women couldn't avoid him, like the female Bratva captains and they simply paid him no attention.

"He was a great fighter, but his vileness was also great and his disregard for women proved to Anatoly that he wasn't Captain material. If Gavriil couldn't accept women as equals, then he couldn't handle working at the same level as them. This of course made him furious after he was denied for a third time for the opportunity to be a Captain. So he decided to talk to Anatoly face to face. That day when he was denied, Anatoly was visiting my father and mother, discussing my fast progress through the Bratva ranks. Gavriil heard he was at the mansion and came to try and sway Anatoly into letting him be a Captain. Now if we had known that he was going to come over, my mother and sister would have immediately vacated the premises."

"Even your mother was afraid of him?" Felicity asked, astounded. "She seems like the kind of woman who didn't scare easy."

"Oh, Mom was far from afraid, she simply did it to sooth my father's fear. Both of them knew that Gavriil would never get anywhere with my mother but they still both knew that if he managed to corner her in a secluded part of the mansion..." Oliver trailed off face set in stone. "She wasn't strong enough to fight him off and that scared my father. Gavriil came into our home that day and from what Thea told me, this is what happened. He came in very angrily, plowing past anyone who would get in his way. After he was told repeatedly by our staff that he would have to wait until the meeting was done, he became enraged. That's when Thea and our cousin, Illyana, started to come downstairs. Thea was the one to recognize Gavriil. His demeanour changed and he became predatory. He told our butler that he didn't mind waiting, that he would have a nice conversation with the girls. They understood what he meant by that and they took off. He ended up chasing after them and he caught Thea. Illyana kept going until she found me, screaming about how a man had attacked them and grabbed Thea. I found him shoving her up against the wall, unbuttoning her school uniform while she tried to fight him.

"I don't really remember much, the rage took over. I ended up beating him to death with a rock souvenir from China that was sitting on the table near where he had Thea. I only remember Thea's voice breaking me free of my rage, and me lowering the rock covered in blood, seeing The Boar's skull smashed open like a pumpkin." Felicity put a hand over her mouth, visualizing the man's head split open on the hallway floor.

"There were members who wanted me dead, who said I deserved to hang for killing a higher ranking member. But Anatoly had my back. He made sure no such thing happened. He never told me why he helped me but I assume it was because I got rid of a problem for him. If he had done it himself, it would have reflected back badly on him. I killed that man to protect my sister. And I did it without hesitation. Without thinking about the consequences of my actions. And if, so help me God, that type of situation arises again, I would do the same thing. Without a second thought. Without hesitation. Without mercy. Love is so powerful Felicity and most people don't know it. The boys did what they did because their love for you was greater than anything else." After Oliver's confession they sat quietly for a moment.

He had just been so open with her. Exposing bits of himself he might not have shared with others. He was showing her things to help her understand, to make her feel better. And that was more than Felicity could ever want from him.

She stood up from her chair, Oliver staring up at her. She simply grabbed his hands to signal she wanted him to stand. He rose to his full higher, now looking down at her and Felicity leaned up. She wrapped her arms around him and set her face against his shoulder. Oliver's hands came up hesitantly but firmly and Felicity moved her face to bury it against his neck. Oliver sighed against her and turned his face into her hair.

"I originally came in here," Oliver said in her ear. "To ask you if you wanted to go for a walk." Felicity pulled back and smiled lightly.

"I would love to." Oliver reached down and grabbed Felicity's hand, leading her out of the room. They walked down the halls towards the back door when Roy came around the corner. They immediately released each other's hands and if Roy caught them, he didn't make a comment.

"Hey Boss, the Knyazev brothers sent over the phone recordings if you wanna listen to them." Oliver hesitated a bit, looking at Felicity.

"I know I promised to walk with you," He said sheepishly. "But this is important." Felicity nodded.

"I understand. It's about my safety, right?" Oliver nodded this time so Felicity waved him forward. "Go. Keep me safe." She smiled softly.

"I'm sure Roy would be happy to accompany you outside." Oliver turned towards the younger man who stepped forward, up for the walk.

"Of course." Felicity smiled brighter and looped her arm through Roy's.

"I'll be out in a few minutes." Oliver said as the pair walked down the hall.

"I'll hold you to it!" Felicity yelled over her shoulder, coaxing a smile out of Oliver. Roy and Felicity made it outside, walking arm and arm before they reached the hill. The wind had picked up, causing waves to crash against the shoreline, filling the air with it's calming sound. Felicity was wearing a long sleeve, dark blue dress that fell a little past her knees, which floated in the wind.

The scene reminded Felicity so much of her first day at the mansion, when the bunny (a sight she hadn't been used to since her family kept her hidden in her house) had caught her attention. So much had changed since then. Her amount of friends, her relationship with her mother and the Knyazev boys, her outlook on her life. She had so much more to offer to the Bratva then she had first considered. As soon as mourning was over Felicity was going to put her new career in motion, helping the Bratva in a new age of technology. She also had files to look at, ones that contained her family's name.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Roy asked beside her. Felicity smiled and tried to keep her hair from blowing into her face.

"I was just thinking of all the things I'm going to get to do once mourning is over. Bright colours, lit spaces, my beautiful computers-"

"Mr. Queen?" Roy asked teasingly. Felicity shut her mouth with a click.

"I-I don't know what your talking about." Felicity stammered. Roy smiled and guided her down the hill.

"Everyone sees it Felicity, the way you two are together. The two of you look at each other with-" Roy groped for the word. "Longing. Like you know you can't be together but you know how much you care for each other and you can't wait until you can finally tell each other." Felicity opened her mouth, ready to defend herself when they heard yelling.

"Help! Please! Someone help me!" Roy and Felicity's heads whipped in the direction of the low stone wall that incised the property. It sounded like a girl's voice coming from the forest. Felicity and Roy took off in that direction and when they came up to the wall, a small Latina girl, who looked to be about seven or eight, came running out from between the trees.

"Help me! Please!" She came up to the wall but was far too short to reach for the top. The pair looked at the girl from over the wall.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Felicity asked. The girl wiped her hands over her face, trying to rid her cheeks of her endless tears.

"My mom fell and hurt herself! There was a lot of blood and I'm worried that she won't make it, please help me!" The little girl looked quite roughed up herself, with scratch marks and dirt all over her. Felicity was climbing over the wall before she could really think about the situation. She dropped to the ground and scooped the girl into her embrace, holding her tightly.

"Felicity what are you doing?" Roy asked bewildered.

"I'm helping this poor girl Roy, have you gone completely heartless?"

"No, but it think we should get more people to help us before we go into the woods." The little girl squirmed until she was able to drop to the ground and she began to tug Felicity towards the forest.

"C'mon! I don't want her to die!" Felicity went along willingly, but slowly so she could finish talking to Roy who hadn't crossed the wall yet.

"Then you go get some more help and I'll go with the girl."

"But I need to protect you!" Roy protested. Felicity sighed, exasperated.

"Then come with me!" The little girl tugged harder before she released Felicity and bolted for the trees, obviously being impatient. "I can't let this girl go off alone Roy. Besides, this forest is still Queen property. I'm safe." Felicity turned and ran after the girl. Roy looked at her retreating form like she had lost her mind.

"Felicity!" But she didn't answer. "Ugh, great!" Roy grumbled as he hoisted himself up and over the wall. He continued to mumble angrily to himself as he followed Felicity. Eventually her caught up to both of the girl who were jogging thought the forest, being mindful of the exposed roots. They jogged for a good minute before the little girl slowed down.

"She should be around here somewhere." The girl cupped her hands around her mouth. "Mom?" The group looked left and right, straining to see any signs of a fallen woman. After a few moments of silence the girl began to cry quietly. Felicity stopped the girl and got down on one knee, turning her to face her.

"Hey, it's okay. I'm sure we'll find your mom soon." The girl shook her head and Felicity became confused.

"I'm so sorry." The little girl said quietly. "I have to do as they tell me. I was supposed to lure you out here. I told myself I wasn't doing a bad thing, that you probably deserved whatever they did but," The girl wiped more of her tears. "I never would have thought that you would be so nice."

"Lure-lure me out here?" Felicity asked, a slight panic rising in her chest.

"Felicity," Roy said, dangerously low. "We're at the border of the Queen property." Felicity looked up and saw a red sign nailed to a tree the said QUEEN PROPERTY ENDS.

How could they have been so stupid? They were close to the edge of the property, to open space, to unsafe territory. The girl grabbed Felicity's arm tightly and she looked back at the little girl.

"You need to run. I think they're going to kill you." Felicity's eyes widened with terror and realization and she fell back as if the girl herself had tried to kill her. She scrambled away from the girl, staggering to her feet in her haste to get away. It was a trap. Roy grabbed ahold of her arm and yanked her back in the direction of the house. They started to run away from the girl and they quickly heard the thundering sounds of footfalls behind them.

It was the Triad, Felicity knew it had to be. They were the only ones with the guts to come after someone on their property. Felicity leapt over a clump of exposed root when an object whizzed past Felicty and a bullet ricocheted off the tree beside her, splitting the bark. It was the first of many, bullets slicing through the air, hitting trees and rocks. Felicity knew that they weren't using guns, the sound would draw too much unwanted attention. In all likelihood they were using slingshots to try and hit her. A few knifes also flew past her head and embedded itself in a couple trees. They were using every quiet weapon they had at their disposal.

After a moment Felicity realized that while she had been so caught up in trying to get away that she didn't notice Roy was no longer beside her. She came to an immediate halt and turned to see him standing in the forest, facing away from her, towards were the Triad would soon come out.

"What are you doing? C'mon!" Felicity yelled in panic.

"I'm going to try and hold them off while you run for the house. You can see the wall from here, keep going!"

"I'm not leaving you, that's insane!"

"I'm not budging, so either I stay and you go and there's a chance both of us will live or you can stay as while and we can both get slaughtered! Your choice!" Felicity stood for a second too long and it took a slingshotted bullet to graze her arm to get her to think and run.

She could hear Roy fighting behind her, the heroic idiot, but she could also hear the other members who passed him to advance on her. Felicity could see the opening to the house and the wall but she knew she would never actually make it to the house alive if she didn't have some backup. She had to think, and fast. She had to find a way to warn the people inside the mansion that wouldn't slow her down.

That's when it hit her. She was running beside water, and _sound travels._ Using the lungs she was graced with, Felicity drew in as big of a breath as she could while she ran and _screamed_.

*******

 

**Next!**

-Oliver to the rescue! (Yay!)

-What has become of Roy? (Insert dramatic music)

-Sharing a shower trope! (Hehehe)

-Sharing a bed! (Platonically, of course)

-More Theroy!


	13. I Need a Hero

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is so late but it's a long one! I struggled at some points so please tell me what you think!  
> Hugs!  
> -Addie

**"Holding Out For A Hero"**

Where have all the good men gone  
And where are all the gods?  
Where's the street-wise Hercules  
To fight the rising odds?  
Isn't there a white knight upon a fiery steed?  
Late at night I I toss and turn and dream of what I need

_[Chorus]_  
I need a hero  
I'm holding out for a hero 'til the end of the night  
He's gotta be strong  
And he's gotta be fast  
And he's gotta be fresh from the fight  
I need a hero  
I'm holding out for a hero 'til the morning light  
He's gotta be sure  
And it's gotta be soon  
And he's gotta be larger than life

Somewhere after midnight  
In my wildest fantasy  
Somewhere just beyond my reach  
There's someone reaching back for me  
Racing on the thunder and rising with the heat  
It's gonna take a superman to sweep me off my feet

_[Chorus]_

Up where the mountains meet the heavens above  
Out where the lightning splits the sea  
I would swear that there's someone somewhere  
Watching me

Through the wind and the chill and the rain  
And the storm and the flood  
I can feel his approach  
Like fire in my blood

_[Chorus x2]_

  
  


Felicity's lungs burned. She took in heaving gasps of air to try and sooth the ache as she neared the end of the forest. She could see the stone wall through the trees and she pushed her legs to go faster. She could feel the blood trickling down her arm as she pumped them to go faster. The wound stung but it wasn't as awful as her flaming lungs. She knew the Triad was gaining on her, even with Roy trying to fend them off. As the wall became more visible, Felicity prayed someone had heard her scream.

 

Oliver sat in his office, listening and writing down the phone conversation between Nikolai and the anonymous caller. He went over it several times before passing it over to his technical man, Dorian.

"Please scrub through this and see if you can find anything of value. Even the smallest thing might be important." The man took the recording and nodded. He backed out of the room and closed the door. Oliver sat back in his chair with an exhale. Finding Felicity's attacker might be way harder than he originally thought.

"Don't beat yourself up." Digg said, reading Oliver's thoughts. "We'll find some kind of clue somewhere. What did you expect when you first started investigating? That a Triad member would just drop onto your property?"

A scream pierced the air, short but high pitched. Oliver stood immediately as Diggle straightened, both of them on high alert. Oliver rushed over to his window and looked outside. 

Roy and Felicity were nowhere to be seen.

"Get as many guards as you can!" Oliver ordered as he and Digg ran out of the office, both of them pulling out their guns. "And get outside!" They split up, Digg to round up more men and Oliver to the nearest exit. Oliver raced through the kitchen and past Raisa and Thea.

"Ollie who screamed? What's going on?" Thea asked, startled and scared by the sight of her brother's gun unholstered.

"Sound the alarm! Felicity's in danger!" Oliver yelled over his shoulder as he threw the kitchen door open and ran outside. Thea leapt off the kitchen stool and darted over to the pantry, lifting the little metal lid beside the light switch. She slammed her hand against the red button that laid underneath. A loud, obnoxious screeching noise filled the mansion, alerting it's occupants to the danger. 

Oliver raced down the hill, toward the forest as guards spilled out of the house from every door. Digg and some more experienced guards caught up with him as he neared the forest.

That was when he caught sight of Felicity.

 

As the forest opened up to the Queen's backyard, Felicity was greeted with the sight of the entire household running down the hill towards her. Relief exploded through her chest and she gave herself one final burst of energy to run and jump at the wall. Her jump landed her with her upper body on the top of the wall, causing her to use her arms to pull herself up the rest of the way. As soon as she cleared the wall, Felicity would be safe. However, at the moment she was the thing standing between Oliver's men and open firing. Oliver wouldn't risk her getting hit and since none of the men were close enough to grab and help her over the wall, it was all up to Felicity.

It was hard to push herself up with her injured arm and before she could even try, a hand wrapped around her ankle and pulled. Felicity was wrenched backwards, thighs and forearms scraping against the rough stone of the wall. She twisted to see a Chinese man with a long ponytail that reached between his shoulder blades, pulling her towards him, with a long knife clutched in his other hand. The man was kneeling, using her and the wall to shelter him from the Bratva members on the other side. He smiled, wide and sick, like he was telling Felicity he was going to enjoy killing her.

With a terrified cry, Felicity socked the man in the jaw, sending him to the ground. He released her leg and Felicity frantically scrambled over the wall, landing ungracefully on the other side with a thud. Her ears were ringing with the force at which she had hit the ground and she could distantly hear Oliver telling his men to open fire, that he would get her out of the way and to safety. Though it burned with her scraped skin, Felicity started to crawl across the ground pushing herself up the hill as gun sounds rang out. A pair of hands grabbed her and she went with them willingly, stumbling to her feet (she realized she had lost a shoe along the way somewhere) and bending over as she ran back up the hill.

Once they were out of range, Oliver hastily spun Felicity towards him, hands grasping her face, checking for injury. Her hands flashed out and grabbed fistfuls of his suit jacket so she could have something to hold onto, to calm herself steady her nerves. His frightened eyes bored into her as he looked for any signs of pain. He let out a large exhale, not seeing any, and crashed Felicity against his chest, one arm around her shoulders and the other hand in her hair. He cradled her tightly against him, having them turned so he was between her and the gun fire. He set his cheek on the top of her head as she breathed him in, getting calmer. She burrowed herself into his chest, nuzzling against him, wanting to feel safe. Oliver pulled her back from his chest and his hands went to the sides of her head again.

"Are you alright?" She shook her head, eyes filling with tears.

"I left Roy behind." Thea let out a strangled gasp behind her, taking a step back in shock and running into Raisa who steadied her. "He stayed back to fend them off but he couldn't have possibly taken them all on at once. Please, go find him." Felicity said, hands wrapping around his wrists.

"My men will look-"

"No, no, no!" Felicity began frantically pushing on his chest, pushing him back towards the forest. "Go find him! Help him! I can wait! Please!" Oliver paused, looking her over before pulling out his gun.

"Stay with Raisa and do exactly as she tells you. That goes for you too Thea." She nodded absentmindedly, hands over her mouth, tears in her eyes as she stared at the forest. "Raisa, get the room ready. We might need it." Oliver turned and ran back to his men, collecting a search party and entering the forest.

" _Might_?" Thea screamed. " _Might_ need the room? Does that mean Roy might not come back alive?" Thea asked, hysterical. Raisa took the girl firmly by the shoulders and shook her.

"Mr. Roy needs you to be strong Miss. Thea. You and Miss. Felicity will help me prepare the room for him and you will help me patch him up when he comes. If he does  not come back alive... We will deal with whatever comes. Until we know his fate, we will assume he is alive. Now come," She ushered the girls inside and through the halls. "We must prepare the room."

"What's the room?" Felicity asked as they entered a hallway she had never been in.

"The medical room." Thea sniffed. Raisa pulled out a set of keys and unlocked a large metal door. 

The room was completely made of stainless steel. Stainless steel tables, stainless steel cabinets, stainless steel walls, stainless steel floor, everything. Raisa rushed over to one of the cabinets and began pulling out kits and tools. Thea brought over a trolley and had Felicity help her set the things Raisa pulled out onto it.

"Why is this room all stainless steel?" Felicity asked, glancing around.

"It's easiest to clean blood off of." Thea wiped a hand under her eyes and continued to fill the trolley. She took in a big breath, obviously trying to keep it together. Raisa stood slowly on her weak knees and she set a hand on Thea's shoulder.

"Miss. Thea I can't find the gowns. Could you please check in the supply closet down the hall?" Thea nodded and left the room.

"Gowns?" Felicity asked as she pulled on the pair of rubber gloves Raisa handed her. This was the first time that Felicity realized she herself had blood on her. Mainly her hand. Her knuckles were spilt and scraped, the blood surrounding it dried and cracked.

"To protect our clothes from the blood." Raisa said, answering her question. Felicity paled, hands faltering as she pushed her hand into her glove. "How are you with blood, Miss. Felicity?"

"Squeamish on a good day." Felicity answered.

"I will need your help to stop any bleeding Mr. Roy might have before Mr. Diggle and I get to work on the hard stuff. Can you do that?" Felicity nodded feebly. "I sent Miss. Thea out of the room in hopes that she wouldn't have to see whatever might have become of Mr. Roy."

"He's my friend too." Felicity said in Thea's defence. "I get to help him but she doesn't?"

"He is your brother Miss. Felicity. But he is Miss. Thea's love." Before Felicity could ask how Raisa could have possibly known that, Oliver and Digg burst into the room, each of them with one of Roy's arms around their shoulders. They dragged the unconscious man over to the table, where Raisa had directed them. They hoisted him up onto the table and Digg walked over to grab a pair of gloves for himself as Raisa waved Felicity over. She tried to not get distracted by the amount of blood Digg and Oliver were covered with or the broken and bashed state of Roy's face.

"Please cut him out of his shirt Miss. Felicity." Raisa said after she had rid him of his suit jacket. Felicity skipped over scissors and grabbed handfuls of the shirt, yanking violently, buttons fly across the room.

"That works also." Raisa said with the tiniest hint of a smile as she lifted him into a sitting position. Felicity pulled the material off his shoulders and down his arms, discarding it on the floor.

His body was covered in deep gashes, obviously from the knives the Triad had been throwing at them. Felicity could also see some circular holes on his back and front that suggested he had several pellet bullets in him. The only wounds that confused Felicity were the ones that were through and through. There was one hole on each shoulder and they were surrounded by smaller holes that didn't go all the way through. Felicity noticed that the smaller holes were only around the holes on his front.

"Please dampen those towels Miss. Felicity." Raisa's voice shook her from her curiosity and she grabbed the pile of towels from the trolley. She jogged over to the small steel sink in the corner and ran the towels under the tap. She rung them out a bit and turned back to the group, seeing Thea in the doorway. The poor girl stood there in shock, watching as Digg and Raisa examined Roy. Felicity rushed over and stepped in front of Thea, putting a hand on her elbow.

"Thea, he's alive." She reassured. "I'm helping him. He's alive." Thea started to shake, tears running down her face. In fear or relief, Felicity didn't know. 

"Give me the gowns Thea." She handed them over. "Stay here and Raisa will let you know when it's okay for you to come over, okay?" Felicity didn't wait for an answer, she simply ran back to Roy. Her and Raisa wiped the dirt and blood off of Roy's chest and back, cleaning him to make it easier for them to find still bleeding wounds.

"Do you know what these holes on his shoulders are?" Felicity asked to no one in particular.

"They're like grappling hooks. The Triad uses them to grab their enemies at a distance and pull them back to them. They shoot the sharp, closed claw, which is attached to a cable, out of the gun. The claw slices through the intended target and it opens, the prongs imbedding themselves into the person." Digg demonstrated by opening his fist with his fingers curved like a cat's claws. He placed his "clawed" hand against his shoulder, showing how they would latch on to a person. "With one flick of a switch on the gun and the cable is retracted and the person is dragged back towards their attacker." Felicity's mouth dropped open. She had never heard of any kind of brutal weapon like that. The hooks had gone into Roy and had yanked him back. It was savage and violent.

"You are no longer needed Miss. Felicity. Thank you for your help." Just as Felicity pulled off her gloves Roy sat up with a pained gasp, awake. Felicity took a step back in shock but was caught by Oliver, her back to his chest. Roy let out an agonizing wail, dipping his head forward as his fingers scrambled for something to hold onto. Raisa and Digg forced Roy back onto his back, struggling as the man withered with pain.

"Roy!" Thea cried out, pushing past everyone and falling to her knees beside his head. "It's okay! You're going to be okay." Roy's back arched off the table as he screamed through his teeth while Raisa poured antiseptic over his wounds. Thea grabbed his hand, squeezing it hard and he turned his head towards her.

"Thea?" He asked, his voice hoarse.

"Yeah, I'm right here."

"You're crying."

"Happy tears you idiot, I thought you were dead." Thea huffed out, pushing a watery smile onto her face. She sniffed, shaking her head and pulling herself together. She put a stern look on her face and frowned at him."If you _ever_ do anything like that to me again, I will burn your hoodie."

"Noted." He choked out, groaning as Digg poked at some of his bullet holes. He grabbed a needle from Raisa. "What's that for?" Roy asked, slightly scared.

"It is to numb your body while Mr. Diggle retrieves your bullets." Roy stared at the needle, breathing heavily and squeezing Thea's hand, hard.

"Roy?" Thea asked. "Roy." She said louder, her free hand coming up to run through his hair, being careful of the injuries on his face. He turned his head towards her, scared. "What's wrong?"

"I don't like needles." Thea looked at him for a moment before laughing softly.

"You practically threw yourself in front of a group of Triad members but a needle has you sweating? You're unbelievable Abercrombie." Digg wiped an antiseptic wipe over the needle site and Roy looked back at the needle being lowered towards his skin.

Thea didn't think, she just pushed up and over Roy, grabbing his jaw lightly and kissing him. Digg inserted the needle, emptied it and pulled it out. Thea pulled back, gracing Roy with one more small kiss before pulling back completely. She gently ran a hand down his blue, black and bloody face, before settling back on her knees. She grabbed his hand again and returned her other hand to his head, to run through his hair.

"I'm not going anywhere." She promised. Roy smiled as best as he could. His eyes drifted past Thea and the smile fell.

"Thea..." He gulped. Thea looked behind her to find Felicity and Oliver watching them. Thea realized her mistake, that he brother now knew about her feelings for Roy.

"Ollie, I-"

"We'll talk about it later. Take care of him for now." He looked down at Felicity. "I need to get you cleaned up." He turned her and escorted her out of the room. He led her down and around the hall and stairs, which confused her.

"Why aren't we going to my bathroom?" She asked as Oliver open a heavy door after punching in a security code.

"I thought we could use more privacy." Oliver said, quick and to the point. He seemed a little on edge, which was understandable considering the circumstances. Someone he was supposed to keep safe was attacked for a third time. Roy was almost critically injured. His sister was in love with one of his men. And his security had been severely breached.

They walked down a set of metal stairs, Oliver flipping a switch once they hit the bottom. The room lit up, showing Felicity that it was a training area filled with metal cabinets, training mats, computers and special weapons display cases. It seemed like Oliver's collection was mostly archery equipment whereas her father had liked to collect swords. It was common for a Bratva member to collect or favour a certain type of weapon. Although they were meant to be well versed in all weaponry, they could use whatever they pleased.

Oliver led her through the area, the hand on her arm keeping her moving. He entered a large connecting room to the area, which was the bathroom. It was set up like a locker room, with several sinks, lockers, toilet stalls and showers. Several of the showers were open to simply walk in and turn the water on, whereas in the back corner there were two small, square stalls with opening glass doors. Felicity assumed that Oliver wanted to get clean at the same time as Felicity, just beside her in the other stall. Felicity opened one of the doors and stepped over the tile lip into the shower. She looked around the extremely small space, examining the soaps, shampoos and knobs of the shower.

Felicity was caught off guard however, when she was attacked with a spray of cold water that erupted out of the shower head.

"Ah!" She cried out, trying to back out of the shower. She ended up running into the wall of muscle that was Oliver, which blocked her exit. So she had to do her best to hide from the spray in the corner, which was proving to be difficult seeing as the space was so small the water hit everywhere.

"Oliver!" She said incredulously, wrapping her arms around herself. "My clothes!" Felicity was still very much in her blue dress as while as her one shoe. Oliver, fully clothed too, stepped as best he could into the shower, which wasn't easily done since it was not built for two people. One and a half maybe but then again, Oliver was not regular sized.

"Your dress is ripped, dirty and bloody. I think water is the least of it's problems." Oliver was taking the brunt of the water, only splashing Felicity with misguided droplets.

"Oliver," Felicity said, a slight clip to her tone. "Why are you in the shower?"

"I need to get you clean."

"I'm very capable of cleaning myself, thank you very much." Felicity said in her defence.

"I need to do it." He stated. His face told her that he wasn't budging on the subject and there was no room to argue. But Felicity was determined to make room.

"I can clean myself Oliver. It's not like there isn't another shower. There are plenty. Even another one with a door! So just go to that one." She reasoned.

"No." Felicity groaned angrily at his stubbornness and shoved his chest. He didn't budge.

"Oliver! Get out!" She shoved harder, anger rising. "I'm not incompetent or helpless! I can clean myself!"

"No!" Oliver shouted back, pushing her hands away. Felicity gave up and tried to slip by him but he slammed his hands against the walls, making himself into a barrier.

"Why is this so important to you?" Felicity yelled at him.

" _Because I thought I lost you!_ " Oliver shouted back. Felicity froze, his words shocking her more than the water. Oliver sighed heavily, hanging his head, eyes closed. The water dripped down his head and off his hair, hitting the shower floor in quick drops. He breathed evenly out of his nose, trying to collect himself.

Felicity tentatively raised her hand to rest on his cheek, showing support. Oliver leaned into her touch, a small, almost inaudible purr coming from the back of his throat as he raised his head up, eye opening. His stubble was rough under Felicity's palm but for once that day, she welcomed the rough feeling. It was a feeling that was all Oliver and it calmed her racing heart.

"Hey," She said softly. "It's okay. I'm right here." Oliver stepped forward as much as he could in the small space, almost completely erasing the distance between them. He left a minuscule amount of space between them because he wasn't sure how many lines he was allowed to cross, how many lines Felicity felt comfortable letting him cross and if he touched her too much, he didn't know what boundaries he would break. Both his and her own. His hands left the wall to settle on the one Felicity was leaning against, by her head. 

He leaned his head into hers, both of them with closed eyes, their foreheads touching as Felicity dropped her hand to his shoulder, the intimacy of the gesture was not lost to either of them.

"I heard you scream and I looked outside but you were gone. I got so scared that the sound I heard was the last one you would ever make. That I was hearing you dying. That I was already too late."

"Oliver," Felicity cooed, eyes opening, her small hands raised to run through his short, wet hair, soothing him.

"I don't know what I would have done if you had died. If I had been unable to protect you." Oliver opened his eyes and ever so slightly nuzzled his nose against Felicity's. "I need to take care of you. I need to prove to myself that I still can. I need to prove to you that I am the right man to look after you."

"You don't have to prove anything to me Oliver. I already know you're the right man." Felicity bit her lip as soon as the words slipped out. They were both so close to laying all their cards out of the table but Felicity wasn't sure if she was ready to show him her hand.

"Ты слишком хорош для меня [You're too good for me.]" He spoke softly. "I know you're not helpless Felicity. You punched that Triad man so hard you knocked him out cold. You're are the complete opposite of helpless. But I need to make sure for myself that you're okay. So please, _please_ , Felicity. Let me take care of you." Lip still snagged between her teeth, she nodded.

Oliver stepped back and out of the shower, confusing Felicity a bit before he bent down to remove his shoes and socks. His suit jacket was the next to go before he began to roll up his sleeves. 

Felicity couldn't help but stare at the blood that covered his white dress shirt. It contrasted so vividly, reminding her so horribly of how Roy had looked, that Felicity had to fight back the bile that rose in her throat. Oliver caught her staring and looked down at his chest, like he had forgotten the blood was there.

"Please," Felicity said meekly. "Please tell me none of that's yours." Oliver, seeing the fear in her eyes, stepped back in the shower, hand reaching out to turn up the heat, while his other hand grabbed Felicity's. He placed her hand flat against his chest before he started to move it around, guiding her. At first Felicity thought it was some sick joke, getting her hand covered in blood but then she realized that he was having her check for herself. There were no wounds. No abnormal bumps, tears in his shirt or lacerations to be found anywhere.

"See?" Oliver asked. "I'm fine." Felicity's hand rested low on Oliver's abdomen, over his pronounced abs. Looking past the blood, Felicity got a very clear view of Oliver's toned body, thanks to the water throughly soaking his thin, white shirt. She flexed her fingers, his muscles jumping against the movement. 

"Now," Oliver said, voice rough as he watched her look at his body. "Let's get you cleaned up." Oliver started by removing her glasses from her face to give him better access to it. He grabbed a face cloth from outside of the shower and proceeded to wash Felicity's face. He held under her chin lightly in his index finger with the pad of his thumb settled against her chin. Tilting her face up, he lightly rubbed and washed the dirt away, letting it rinse away under the spray of water. He was gentle but firm in places where the dirt seemed determined to cling to Felicity's skin. As he moved over her face, he brushed her hair away from her jaw, where the wet hair was stuck. 

It was the first time Oliver saw the blood on Felicity. There were some flecks that dotted her jaw and neck but following the path down, he saw the rip in her sleeve from the bullet graze.

"You're hurt." Felicity followed Oliver's gaze to her arm. She shrugged.

"It was just a graze. Sure it stings a bit but it's hardly life threatening." She looked back up at him and caught a glimpse of the hurt in his eyes.

"Oliver." She said sternly, placing a hand on his chest. "I'm fine." He looked back at her and she pushed a small smile onto her face. He nodded, agreeing that he didn't have to rush her to Digg to get fixed up. The tension slipped away a fraction, leaving him a little less rigid. He returned to scrubbing away at her face, furiously rubbing the blood away until her skin was raw.

"Oliver." Felicity reached up and grabbed his wrist, stilling his movements. "I think you got it all." She looked at him sincerely and he sighed, tension rolling off him as she helped prove that she really was okay.

"I, um," Oliver said timidly, moving back a centimetre to try and get a better view of Felicity. "I need to clean your scrapes." He gestured to her arms and legs. Felicity looked at her forearm and found the skin from her wrist to her elbow had been severely shredded. It had bled quite a lot but not enough for Felicity to notice earlier. There were forming bruises around the injury and Felicity found an identical injury on the front of her thighs from when she was dragged back across the stone wall.

Oliver placed a hand on Felicity's shoulder and pushed her back the millimetre it took to have her right against the back tile wall. He reached into his pocket and rifled around for something.

"I really hope you don't care about this dress." Felicity sighed and looked down at herself.

"Not anymore. Dirt and blood is kinda hard to wash out but I'm sure Raisa could _try_ -" Felicity shut up when Oliver retrieved what he needed from his pocket and flicked his pocket knife open with a 'click'. Felicity's eyes widened with horror.

"What's that for?"

"Stay still," Oliver ordered, not answering her question. "And I might not nick you."

"What?" Felicity asked in disbelief. Oliver stayed silent and carefully stuck the tip of his knife under the hem of her sleeve. In one quick moment, Oliver cleanly sliced the fabric in half. Felicity gaped at her now really ruined dress before she reached out and smack Oliver's arm.

"What was that for?" He asked.

"I could ask you the same thing! Why are you ripping my dress?"

"I need easy excess to your wounds and the material's in the way. If you were to roll up your sleeve, it would hurt. My way is clean and painless." Felicity opened her mouth to object but found no argument.

"Fine. Just get the others over with." Oliver quickly split the other sleeve then he reached down to grab the hem of the skirt of the dress and sliced it up the middle, stopping high on her thigh. Felicity bit her lip as she stared at the torn fabric. She had fantasized about Oliver ripping her clothes off her but seeing him there, having almost cut her out of her dress completely was...almost better than her imagination. Oliver stood to his full height and she looked up to see him staring down at her with hooded eyes, obviously understanding that his actions could have been used in a more intimate setting. That is if you could get more intimate than standing in a shower with a man as he had you backed against the wall. 

Felicity released her lip, taken aback by the look on his face. He was looking down at her with, longing. Like he had so many things he wanted to tell her, things he wanted to say but didn't. He couldn't say anything because no matter how much he cared for her, he couldn't do anything about it. Yes, they had a clean slate but that didn't mean that everyone would rush to congratulate them on a relationship. Even higher members in the Bratva could dismiss their relationship if they didn't like it. Felicity wanted to tell him things too, but one thing would enviably lead to another and it would be like their whole worlds were against them.

Oliver shifted forward, pushing his chest into Felicity, with his large hands encompassing her hips. He let his head fall to the crook of her neck, breath fanning over her skin, causing her skin to break into goosebumps. His mouth barely drifted over her skin, moving up to her ear. Felicity was too focused on his hot breath and the anticipation of him maybe kissing her to notice one of his hands leaving her hip. Oliver nosed her wet hair out of the way and whispered into her ear.

"I'm sorry." Felicity almost felt him bite her earlobe but before she could think about it, Oliver was yanking the temperature to cold and shoving Felicity under the water.

"Ah!" She tried to move but Oliver banded an arm around her waist, keeping them under the freezing spray. "Oliver!" Felicity yelled, attempting to look up at him through the water cascading over her face. Trying to escape the water, Felicity pressed herself into Oliver's chest, arms around herself, forehead resting against his wet shirt. She tried to make herself smaller to escape the spray that pounded against her back, burrowing herself against Oliver's front. Oliver moved his hand, getting a better grip on Felicity before spinning her to face the spray.

She cried out, arms raising to protect herself from the icy water, which hurt since the water pounded against scraped forearms. She pushed back against Oliver, attempting to avoid the assault. Unfortunately, Oliver was already backed up against the wall, leaving no room for Felicity to move. She twisted and turned, trying to break free of Oliver grip, arms stinging. It was no use since Oliver was twice her size and three times as strong. He dipped his head closer to hers as he wrapped his other arm around her, hugging her from behind. He kept murmuring in her ear that he was sorry, which Felicity didn't understand. After a minute of struggling, Felicity's arms, which had taken the brunt of the water, had become numb from the cold and she slumped against Oliver.

"Oliver," She whimpered. "Please. Make it stop." Oliver spun her away from the water so fast it made Felicity's head spin. Now it was him in front of her, with his back taking the force of the water. Felicity wrapped her arms around herself again, trying to get warm, when Oliver put his hand on her cheek. Felicity met his eyes and they were filled his warmth and pride.

"You did so good Felicity, thank you." He guided his thumb across her cheek in a soft caress. Felicity was so beyond confused.

"What? I did a good job at almost drowning? Of almost feeling like I was being waterboarded? I can't feel my arms Oliver!"

"I know. And I know it was hard but your injury is clean now. Scraps need cold water to be cleaned and if I had used the cloth to clean it, it would have hurt a whole lot more. I also held you there because if you had done it voluntarily, I'm not sure how long you would have lasted." He...had a point. If she had done it voluntarily there was a chance she would have bailed and probably even escape the shower. Then it would have been harder to get her back in to finish the job. Felicity knew how much it hurt to have your cuts cleaned with a cloth. Who didn't? Almost everyone has fallen and scraped up there knees or elbows or any other manner of body part and had someone clean them up.

"Can we please turn the heat up now?" Felicity asked. "And by heat up I mean the water, not us, we don't need to do that. Not that I'm saying we're always heated up and ready to go at it. But I'm also not saying that we're not heated or hot because you definitely are with your muscles and tattoos and face-" Felicity shut her mouth with a click and a groan. "Why do I have to constantly stick my foot in my mouth?"

"It's charming." Oliver commented. "Unfortunately no, we can't heat up the water. I still need to clean your legs." Felicity gaped at him.

"But-but I just cleaned my legs!"

"No, you cleaned your arms. Yes, your legs got wet but they weren't directly under the water."

"Well, it's kind of impossible to have my legs under the spray seeing as it hits the opposite wall and not the ground. I can get myself from the waist up but not my legs." She argued.

"I know." Oliver said solemnly. "Which is why I'm really sorry this time." Oliver lifted the wash cloth into her line of sight and with her eyes widening in horror, she furiously shook her head.

"No, Oliver, it'll hurt." Oliver nodded and slide her over to the corner.

"I know, but unless you want an infection..." Felicity sighed and conceded. Oliver lowered himself to the floor on one knee and rid Felicity of her remaining shoe. He opened the shower door and tossed it out, then turned back to Felicity with his back leg hanging out of the door since the stall was too small to accommodate his big frame. He grabbed the cloth and wet it before looking up at her, his face level with her lower abdomen.

"Can you-" Oliver swallowed heavily, noticing their very precarious position. "Can you spread your legs a bit?" Felicity moved her legs apart, the movement easy with her now shredded dress. "More, more...good. Can you bring that leg closer to me? Yeah, right there." Oliver scooted forward, lowering himself a bit and took a hold of her leg, his face so close to her thigh that she could feel the whispers of stubble against her skin. He looked up to see if she was ready and _holy hell_ , seeing him like that painted one hell of a picture. On his knees in front of her, one bent leg in his grip, his face so close to where she wanted him she was sure it would drive her crazy. Just a couple inches up and to the left and he would be right there. Her torn dress would give him easy access and all he would have to do is push her panties aside and stick his tongue-

"Are you ready Felicity?" She brought out of her slight fantasy and nodded weakly, not trusting her voice at that moment. Oliver set to work at cleaning her injury with the dampened cloth, which stung as expected but the feel of Oliver's flexing fingers and hand gliding easily over her slick and wet skin was enough to distract her. The cold water was doing nothing to damper her arousal, nor was Oliver's fingers poking carefully at the end of the injury, at the top of her thigh. Felicity tipped her head back against the tile wall and shifted, her hips involuntarily lifting.

"I'm sorry," Oliver said, looking up at her. "Did I hurt you?" Felicity was somewhat grateful that from Oliver's perspective it looked like she was in pain, rather than turned on.

"Nh un." She muttered, shaking her head. Oliver continued, more timid, which was worse than before because instead of feeling like Oliver was simply holding her, Felicity now felt like he was caressing her. His hands pushed the fabric of her dress further out of the way and gently rubbed the cloth over her leg. 

He released her leg after another minute and Felicity could finally let herself breathe. It was over and now she didn't have to worry about jumping him at any point. But then Oliver grabbed her other leg, pulling and coaxing her into bending it like she had with the other. _Oh God_ , he was doing the other leg and Felicity didn't know if she'd survive. Oliver was gentle like before and it was torture. Felicity did everything she could not to roll her hips even though she desperately needed some kind of relief.

"I can turn the water hot again and you can get warm as I finish, okay?" Oliver reached over and turned the water up, hot water and steam rising out of the shower. And that worsened everything because if the cold water couldn't help, then the hot water would only add to Felicity's arousal. When she whimpered above him, Oliver stopped and looked up.

"Did I hurt you?" Felicity shook her head. He regarded her face and her position. "What do you need Felicity?"  She was a little taken aback by the question but she knew her answer and a small part of her knew he did too.

"You." She said hoarsely. Oliver didn't waste a second and he surged up, fingers quickly pushing her panties aside as his mouth went directly to her clit. Felicity cried out, hips jerking, hands flying down to thread through his short hair to hold him firmly against her as Oliver sucked and rolled his tongue over the sensitive nub before darting his tongue out to lick up her slick folds. She whimpered, back sliding against the wet tile supporting her, feet struggling to keep purchase and her upright. Felicity's hips rolled, seeking friction as Oliver continued to lick and suck on her outer lips, tasting her folds, licking her clean. 

Felicity's sex was dripping wet and oh so sensitive from waiting for him to do something, from watching his clean her legs. His hands slid along her skin, pushing and spreading her legs wider as he took one and threw it over his shoulder. This gave him better access, letting his beard rub against her sex, creating a beard burn on the inside of her thighs. The prickly feeling caused the heat to twist and coil in her belly, Felicity's sex clenching and aching for him to be inside her, for her to feel more.

"Oliver," She pleaded. "Please, please!" She could feel him smiled against her folds before he stuck his tongue inside her. Felicity cried out, head tipping back violently and hitting the tile behind her as Oliver pushed her firmly against the wall, keeping her in place. She ground her hips down against his mouth, his tongue curling against her slick walls, stroking the fire in her gut.

God, how long had she wanted this? To have him down there, licking her, sucking and tasting her? His hands felt gentle, rubbing her wet legs in a soothing matter, but his mouth was unrelenting. He was quickly pushing her to the edge, higher and higher, his hand reaching around so his finger could furiously rub her clit, pleasure spiking through her body. She moaned Oliver's name, hips moving faster, matching the speed of his fingers and tongue, her pleasure reaching it's peak-

"All done." Oliver said, dropping her leg. Felicity looked down in shock and almost face palmed. She had a sexual fantasy about Oliver Queen, while she was awake, while he was right there. What did she look like right now? Had she made any noises?

"I just need to get you cleaned off then I'll cover up your scraps, okay?" Oliver stood as he spoke and Felicity slowly closed her legs back together realizing that he had no idea how turned on she was. She thanked whatever god that was listening that she hadn't moaned while she had daydreamed. Oliver moved to turn the water off but Felicity stopped him with a hand on his arm.

"Wait, I-" Felicity swallowed, tugging on Oliver's sleeve to get him face her fully. "I'm still cold." She boldly pulled Oliver's arms, moving them so he placed his hands on her hips. She pushed him back a step, putting them under the hot water, and slid her hands up his arms and around his neck. She rose herself up on her toes and placed her forehead in the crook of his neck, hugging him hard. Oliver got the message and slid his hands around her back, hauling her closer, head in her wet hair.

"Thank you Oliver." Felicity said, snuggling her face closer as the water cascaded down over them. She heard his breath falter and his grip tightened, mouth going to her ear.

"You're welcome." Felicity shivered against him and Oliver reached out blindly to turn the heat up further. Felicity pressed herself into Oliver as the water beat down on them.

"If you keep turning the heat up, we'll never get out of the shower."

"You say that like it's a bad thing." Oliver said cheekily. Felicity smiled and pulled back enough to kiss Oliver firmly on the cheek. It was chaste but firm and so full of meaning. She did her best not to linger too long. Oliver pulled away to look at her and Felicity's face sobered.

"I really am thankful you saved me Oliver." She rested her hands on his face, holding his gaze. She trusted him. "You're a good man Oliver, despite what you think from time to time. And I'm glad that out of everyone in the Bratva, you're the one protecting me." Oliver's face faltered and he took a step forward, Felicity's back colliding with the wall behind her. His shoved his face into her neck and held her hard.

"Но что, если я не тот человек? Что , если я позволю тебя? Что делать, если я не вы? [But what if I'm not the right person? What if I let you down? What if I fail you?]"

"You're a good man Oliver."

Felicity carded a hand soothingly through his hair, while her other hand was anchored at the back his neck, holding him against her. Oliver shifted, straightening, lips brushing against her skin, trailing across her necks and jaw until they were face to face.  One hand left her back to settle against the back of her neck, mirroring her position as he leaned down, noses nudging. His hand squeezed her hip and Felicity inhaled sharply, back arching, mouth opening wide, hands gripping Oliver painfully. Felicity's skin felt like it was on fire, tingling with need, wanting so much from him, wanting to give so much. Oliver's nose brushed hers and she returned his sharp grip, having him gasp for breath. His mouth pushed hot air over hers, mouth wide open. Neither of them moved for a moment, simply feeling each other, skin and lips almost touching. Oliver licked his lips, his tongue just brushing Felicity's top lip. god, she wanted this so bad, but they couldn't have it. Just as Oliver leaned down a fraction, Felicity spoke up.

"We shouldn't do this." She breathed against him. Oliver stopped in his tracks, breathing out a remorseful sigh, knowing she was right. He reluctantly pulled back, turning the water off and grabbing Felicity's hand. They stepped out of the shower and Oliver snatched up one of the large, white, fluffy towels and wrapped it around Felicity. It was meant for someone the size of Oliver so it engulfed her.

"Dry off and get warm. There's a robe in the locker over there." Oliver pointed to one of the lockers on the end. "I'll be right over here, getting changed." Felicity nodded and they both set off towards their own separate corners to strip from their wet clothes. Felicity's torn dress was sticking to her like a second skin and the ripped bottom made it difficult to pull over her head. She decided it was best to get out of all of her clothes so she slipped her bra off and pushed her panties down her legs. She found them embarrassingly wet, which wasn't all caused by the water. She wrapped the two articles of clothes inside her dress and she opened the locker to quickly snatch the robe inside to cover her naked body. Felicity noticed, as she put it on, that the robe was basically the same material as the towel. Big, white, fluffy and soft. It practically ate Felicity, the collar of it pushing up around her face and it was so big she had to knot the ties just to keep it properly closed. It reached well past her knees and Felicity had to roll the sleeves up a couple times to be able to see her hands. It was a comfortable robe, like a big hug. One thing about it however caught her attention.

It smelled like Oliver.

If she were to hazard a guess, she was probably standing next to his locker. She decided to open it, to actually look inside rather than throw it open and closed like she had in her haste to get clothed. 

The first thing she noticed was the regular things you would keep in a locker room locker. The shower products, change of clothes and shoes, emergency snacks and he even had a first aid kit all to himself. Felicity smiled at that, imagining him fussing about being taken care of, saying that he could fix himself up. She could see a gun stored away in the back, probably for emergencies. She wondered how many guns were systematically placed around the house.

The last thing to capture Felicity's attention were the photos that decorated the locker door. Near the top was the generic family photo of the Queens, one that involved the late Mr. Queen. Felicity unfortunately never met Robert Queen, he died a couple years ago in a boating accident. Accident might not be the correct word seeing as the ship was recovered with a giant hole blasted out of the side. Although there had been suspicions about fowl play by the Triad, no one could come up with definitive evidence to support the claim. They knew someone sabotaged the boat but no one could pin it on the Triad. Being a wealthy businessman meant that Robert Queen had more enemies than your usual Bratva member. He climbed the ladder of success and had used other people as the rungs.

Felicity's eyes traveled down to look at the rest of the pictures. One was of a young Oliver with a very young Thea on his back, both smiling at the camera. Another was of Digg and Lyla, his wife, on their wedding day. There was a photo of Tommy and Sara as while as another brunette who looked familiar but Felicity couldn't place where she had seen her before. One photo was of Oliver and Anatoly Knyazev on the day Oliver officially became a Bratva Captain. Felicity knew Anatoly well, and often missed him while she was in Mourning. He was a good, honest and trustworthy man who treated her with respect. He was like a surrogate father for Felicity and she loved him like family. Some of the pictures further down had Felicity's mouth opening in shock. 

They were of _her_. 

One was a selfie Thea had surprised her with in the kitchen. Thea was laughing at Felicity's caught off guard face and Felicity had a look of shock. It was a good picture, despite her being ambushed by it. Another one near it was also of her and Thea, both of them propped up against each other, asleep on the library couch. They looked really peaceful and that was part of the reason Roy had taken it in the first place. Thea had insisted on deleting it since she didn't like being caught off guard in photos (despite doing it to others) but Oliver obviously got a copy before she did. The last picture was of her and Tommy at the party a couple weeks ago, with Tommy with his arm around her waist, pulling her to his side and planting a kiss on her cheek while she had a fake surprised look on her face. Thea had taken the photo, demanding that they do something cute. Tommy had obviously come up with the picture idea.

"I'm sorry." Oliver said from behind her, making her jump since she hadn't heard him come up behind her. Felicity turned around to see Oliver dressed in an identical robe although his fit him better than hers did. He looked almost, _guilty_.

"I should have asked you if it was alright to put your pictures in my locker. You probably think I'm a total-"

"Sweetheart." Felicity finished for him with a smile, which surprised him. "You have all these pictures of your family and friends. All the people you care about, right here for you to look at before and after you're done training. It's sweet. Sure, you should have ask for the go ahead but it's still sweet." She stepped forward, went up on her toes and planted another kiss on his cheek.

"We should-" Oliver said swallowing as she pulled back. "We should get those bandages for your injuries." Felicity nodded in silent agreement and closed the locker after he had grabbed the first aid kit from inside. Felicity followed him to the row of sinks, where he set the kit down and motioned for her to come closer.

"Sorry." He said briskly. Oliver stepped up to her and took her by the waist, lifting her onto the counter as Felicity yelped in surprise.

"Sorry, but you're more my level when you're up here and it'll be easier for me to bandage your wounds."

"Stop saying sorry." Felicity huffed out. "You have to do stuff because it'll be easier for you to take care of me, I get that. Just stop apologizing for making things easier for yourself, please." Oliver nodded then turned to open the first aid kit. He brought out bandages and tape for her wounds. Felicity's legs and feet were dangling over the edge of the counter, which she was swinging back and forth.

She was a little tired and ready to go off to bed. Unfortunately, her brain felt the same way it did the first night she was able to calm down from her panic attack without her mediation. She felt on edge, overly awake, like she couldn't calm down. She knew she wasn't in shock, Felicity had gone through shock before and it didn't feel anything like this. Shock felt like numbness and confusion. Felicity wasn't confused or numb (except maybe her arms from the relentless spray of water), she was just tired. 

Oliver put a hand on her leg and she looked over at him. He looked tired too, only he seemed better at hiding it. He'd probably gone longer than this without sleep and he could probably go longer. He was a true warrior and soldier and Felicity was so grateful that she had him to help and protect her.

"I know you're probably tired right now, but I just need to cover your injuries and then you can go to sleep, okay?"

"I'm not that tired. I feel mostly awake, like I could run a mile. I'm all hyped up."

"That would be the adrenaline, Felicity. Being chased, almost dying, having to worry about Roy and help Raisa clean him up? That'll really get your blood pumping. You'll come down from the adrenaline high soon." Felicity sighed and leaned back against the mirror behind her.

"Do you think Roy will be okay?" She asked in a small voice. Oliver stopped unwrapping the bandages and set them down slowly.

"He's a fighter Felicity. A survivor. He'll push through and he'll have us to help him get better. He'll have Thea." Felicity tilted her head to the side and regarded Oliver.

"And how do you feel about that? Roy and Thea?"

"If I had known about it earlier, I would have shut it down, kicked Roy out, kept them apart." Felicity straightened at his confession. 

"You would have fired Roy?"

"Of course. But I can't do that now, they're too involved."

"Oh of course." She said venomously. "You can't get rid of him now because he's the hero who saved me and firing him would make you look like an ass."

"Don't you understand? This relationship puts both Thea and you in danger."

"Excuse me?" Felicity asked, a little agitated at hearing Oliver use her in his excuse to get rid of Roy.

"If we were in a life threatening situation, and someone had pointed a gun at both you and Thea, he would abandon you to protect her, because he loves her. He would throw himself in front of her, even though you are who he's supposed protect."

"How can you be so sure? How do you know Roy wouldn't do his job?" Felicity asked angrily in Roy's defence.

"Because it's what I would do! If I'm supposed to protect Thea, because she is my sister, and someone were to point a gun at you, I would-" Oliver cut himself off. He sighed and continued. "I would throw myself in front of you." _Because I love you. Like Roy loves Thea._ Felicity knew that's what he wanted to say, she could see it in his face. She felt the urge to say it to him but held herself back.

"You need to stop doing that, too."

"Doing what?" Oliver asked, eyebrows creased.

"Saying sweet things. They make me want to kiss you." Oliver startled, eyes going wide. "And by kiss I mean on the cheek! Like I did earlier. Twice. Because you're nice and taking care of me and you should be rewarded-not to say that every nice deed means you get a reward! And by reward I mean timid and platonic rewards not sexual rewards because that would be inappropriate." Oliver suddenly grabbed under Felicity's knees and yanked her forward, Felicity yelping and flailing, her hands landing on his shoulders. Felicity was sitting precariously on the edge of the counter, Oliver still holding her legs. They were face to face, her legs around his hips and Oliver was grinning wickedly.

"Just so you know," He leaned forward and put his mouth to her ear, biting her lobe, causing her hips to jump forward into Oliver. "I'm not sorry about that." He said, referring to pulling her across the counter.

"Now," He breathed against her. "Letting get those bandages on so we can go to bed." Felicity shivered at the thought, his words taking on a double meaning. He pulled back, smiling at her which she returned, and placed his hands on her thighs, keeping them spread. Luckily, since the robe was so big, some of the material had fallen between her legs to cover her. Oliver pushed the material away from her legs (Felicity having to hold the material in front of her to stay covered) so he could lay the bandage over top of her scrap. He gently put the tape over the edges, smoothing it down so there were no bumps. He repeated the processes on the other leg, making sure the bandage wouldn't fall off. He repeated this for her arms and grabbed a fifth bandage for the bullet graze on her upper arm, carefully placing it on, being as gentle as possible.

"Are you sure I'm going to come down from this adrenaline rush? Because I still feel really awake." Oliver frowned and grabbed a bottle from inside the first aid kit. He also grabbed a paper cup from the stack by the sink and filled it with water. He handed Felicity the cup and two pills from the bottle.

"Take these, they'll help you sleep and should help with any pain you might have." Felicity took the pills and down the water in one gulp. "I'm going to go put the kit away and then we can go upstairs, okay?" Felicity nodded, swinging her legs back and forth, he hands gripping the counter edge. Oliver showed a hint of a smile as he looked at her, looking like a child in her too-big robe, perched on the counter that was too high for her to touch the ground. Oliver set off to put the kit away and Felicity waited to feel sleepy. She sure as hell knew she needed some sleep, her bones felt achy, like they were singing for sleep. She knew the pills were supposed to help her sleep but they seemed to be taking a long time to work. Usually stuff like this was supposed to help you go to sleep instantly but Felicity didn't feel anything.

She swung her legs faster and watched the movement when suddenly everything became fuzzy. The world spun too quickly and she felt like she was being rocked side to side. She could feel herself tipping forward, the slight unbalance about to send her toppling off the counter. She managed to let out a garbled, "Oliver," before she fell off the counter.

Luckily Oliver was right there to catch her, having seen her tilt precariously forward after he rounded the corner from his locker. He had sprinted forward and caught her at the last second. He managed to catch her with one of her arms over his shoulder, while he wrapped his arms around her middle. Her head lulled to the side and away from his other shoulder. Oliver knelt on the floor, arms keeping Felicity in a somewhat sitting position as he shook her frantically.

"Felicity? What's wrong? Felicity!" He yelled in panic.

"Wha de ya gib me?" Felicity asked, mouth feeling like it was full of cotton.

"I gave you a mild sedative Felicity but it shouldn't have had this effect on you..." Oliver trailed off, realizing his mistake before he started laughing.

"Wha?" Felicity asked, having trouble keeping her eyes open.

"I gave you the dosage that I would normally give myself. But you're not me Felicity, you're tiny and I gave you more sedative than you needed. You're okay Felicity, you've just got more drugs in you than you should. You'll be fine and you can sleep, I've got you." Felicity nodded weakly and stopped fighting the drugs. She let her head fall back and she went limp, the only sign she was alive was the steady up and down of her chest. Oliver lifted Felicity into his arms and carried her off to her room.

 

When Felicity awoke, she was in her room, in her bed. She sat up groggily, rubbing her eyes. She looked over and found her glasses sitting on the bedside table and after putting them on she saw that she was still in Oliver's robe. She pulled the soft material tighter around herself as she readjusted it, pulling it fully closed. Felicity swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood, a little shaky. Oliver had obviously given her way more sedative than she needed.

Felicity decided that she would go see how Roy was doing and make sure he was okay. She walked over to the door and opened it, finding Ivan at his post on the other side. He looked up from his book and smiled.

"Good evening Miss. Smoak. I see the sedative finally wore off." Felicity smiled at her nighttime bodyguard and leaned against the doorframe.

"Do you know where Roy is? I wanted to check up on him." Ivan gave a sly smile, like he knew something she didn't.

"He's in Miss. Queen's room. Has been since they allowed her to move him somewhere more comfortable. The whole house is abuzz you know, about their hidden relationship." Felicity straightened up.

"I know people can't help themselves from gossiping but shouldn't you all be more worried about the attack that took place? The attack that severely injured one of your fellow bodyguards and friend?" Felicity didn't say it to be mean or to make Ivan feel guilty, she simply wanted him to understand that there were more important things to think about than a relationship that was none of his business.

"I'm sorry, you're right. I'll walk you to Miss. Queen's room." Ivan set down his book hastily and walked with her down the two hallways it took to be at Thea's bedroom door. Before Felicity went in, Ivan stopped her.

"I have to ask Miss. Smoak, did you know? About them I mean." Felicity smiled softly.

"Who do you think gave them the push towards each other in the first place?" She pushed the door open and slipped inside. Closing it softly, seeing that Roy and Thea were asleep, Felicity crept over to the chair near the bed. The two of them were curled around each other in Thea's bed, Thea with her head on Roy's chest, over his heart and Roy with his arm around her. They looked positively adorable and Felicity smiled at her friend's sleeping forms.

She stayed for a few minutes before her shifting in the chair had it creaking, and Thea awoke. She blinked in the darkness and Felicity smiled, giving a little wave.

"How is he?" She asked in a whisper. Thea didn't move much, in hopes of keeping Roy in his much needed sleep.

"Raisa said that he's definitely going to make it. He might have to have some physical therapy, since one of those god awful claw things severed a nerve in one of his shoulders. He's going to need a lot of bed rest but since we have nothing better to do, he'll have a lot of company." Felicity smiled and set her elbow on the armrest, holding her head up by her hand.

"I'm sure we'll be here so long that he'll get sick of us."

"No I won't." Roy said suddenly, startling both girls. "Can someone turn a light on please? It's dark as shit in here." Felicity laughed a bit and reached over to flick on the bedside lamp. The room filled with a soft glow, enough to see each other but not enough to blind them with sudden light.

"Can I sit up please?" Roy asked, shifting a bit. Thea sat up like a shot and with Felicity's help, got Roy up against the headboard and pillows. He groaned a bit and wiggled against the pillows to get more comfortable. Felicity gave him a glass of water with a straw in it for easy drinking which he smiled at her for. He took a heathy amount before passing the cup to Felicity. He kept moving against the pillows and Thea became worried.

"Is something wrong? Do you need something?"

"Yeah," Roy said, opening his arms to her. "I need my heat source." Thea smiled and moved over, snuggling against his chest. He sighed in content then looked over at Felicity.

"How are you? No critical injuries?"

"I'm fine. One bullet graze and a couple of scraps on my limbs. Definitely not as bad as you."

"How _are_ you Felicity?" He asked again, conveying a completely different meaning.

"I'm okay. A little scared and feeling a little stupid. I let myself worry about that girl and not myself and I almost got the two of us killed. I almost killed you." Felicity said, voice cracking as her eyes filled with tears. Roy reached over and held her hand.

"No one is blaming you for being compassionate Felicity. We saved each other. I held them off and you got the guys from the house to come help me. We both choose to go after that girl. If anything, we're both to blame." Felicity sniffed and wiped her eyes.

"I'm glad you're both okay." Thea said. "If you think you can survive without me for a few minutes, I could really use a shower." She said to Roy as she scooted away from him.

"Maybe I could join you." Roy replied with a smirk. Thea shook her head at him.

"Nice try. You can barely stand on your own right now, I'll give a bath later." She winked at him and leapt off the bed. Felicity stood too.

"I should re-bandage my scraps. I'll be in the room across the hall, I think I'll have a shower too, to wake me up more." Roy nodded and sipped his water.

"I'll be fine for a few minutes." Felicity nodded and headed off to the unoccupied room across from Thea's room. Felicity stepped into the bathroom and closed the door before stripping out of the robe. She hung a big, white towel next to the shower for easy access after she was done. She gingerly peeled the tape around the bandages off and removed them. Her wounds were healing nicely, already scabbing over. She decided to leave the bandage over her bullet wound, thinking that it could probably go longer without needing to be redone. She climbed into the shower, sliding the glass door closed, and let the hot water wash over her. She let herself lose time as she rubbed the shampoo and soap over her body, enjoying the sensations. She was finishing rubbing the soap over her chest with her head tilted back and her eyes closed when she heard Thea screaming. Felicity's eyes snapped open in shock, fear and worry.

Felicity saw red.

It wasn't out of rage, seeing red when you get so angry that you can't control yourself. No, it was _literally_ red. The shower stall was flecked with red, the red pouring down over her and Felicity looked down at her body and saw her covered in it. Looking up at the shower head she saw red water flowing out and Felicity realized in horror that it was blood. 

She let out a scream of fear and threw the shower door open, grabbing her towel and bolting from the room. She continued to scream even after she made it out of the room and into the hallway. Felicity plastered herself against the wall opposite the door to the room, using the towel to cover the front of her body. Oliver, Digg and some other guards came sprinting around the corner, moving faster when they saw the state she was in. She clutched the white, now stained red, towel across her front, the rest of her covered by the wall she was backed against. Oliver got to her first, gun in one hand, as the other gripped her shoulder. She saw the fear in his eyes, which was understandable given the attack earlier and her appearance. She was absolutely soaked in red, from her blonde hair to her face and chest, all the way down her legs to her toes.

"What happened?" Oliver asked in panic, standing close.

"The shower! It just-I heard Thea scream and when I opened my eyes I was covered in blood. It was in the water." Oliver looked behind him at Digg who nodded at jogged off towards the bathroom and the still running shower. Felicity started shaking, because of the cool air on her bare skin or because of the shock of getting a bloodbath, she didn't know. She tipped forward (which easy since he was so close that she didn't have go far) and rested her forehead against Oliver's bare chest, over his rapidly beating heart. He raised his free hand and arm and wrapped it around her shoulders, soothing Felicity as she calmed herself. 

Thea ran out of her room, her towel more securely wrapped around her body.  She was just had blood covered as Felicity only it contrasted more against Felicity's blonde hair than Thea's brown.

"What the hell is up with the water?" Thea seemed calmer than Felicity. Less scared and more agitated.

"Someone must have done something to the water tank for this section of the mansion." Digg said as he exited the opposite room. "It could be happening to all of them or just this one water tank but we'll have to check to be sure." He grabbed the extra guards and they set off for the backyard where the various water tanks were kept. Since the mansion was so big, different sections were run on separate systems. Thea sighed angrily and crossed her arms.

"I hope it's just this section, how else am I going to wash this out?" She poked her head back inside her room to talk to Roy. "I'm going to see if there's a shower in here that won't get me blood covered. Roy says he'll be fine until I get back." Thea walked down the hall, in search of a new bathroom. Oliver looked back down at Felicity.

"Hey," He said softly, getting her to straighten up, his free hand going to her cheek. "Let's go find somewhere to get you cleaned off." Felicity nodded mutely, shifting the towel so it would cover her completely. They walked all the way down to the kitchen where Oliver set his gun on the kitchen counter and grabbed a cloth for Felicity.

"I know this isn't a shower," He said as he ran the cloth under the tap. "But of every place in the house, this is probably the last place to have blood tainted water. The kitchen runs on it's own system alone and if this was some kind of attack, who would go for the place that's just one room?" He stepped up and had her sit on the counter stool, then started to wipe the cloth over her exposed shoulders and across her neck. She sat silently while he cleaned her, instead of protesting like last time because she knew that he felt he had to do this. She knew he believed that being the one to take care of her made him feel better. So she let him work in peace until she was almost visibly clean when Digg came in. He stood solemnly in the doorway which had Oliver straightening from his position on the floor where he had been cleaning off Felicity's legs.

"What is it Digg?"

"I found out what was in the water tank."

"What?"

"It seems the Triad dumped a body in the water tank." He pulled his phone of his pocket and opened up to the pictures he had taken. "The boys are getting her out as we speak."

"Her?" Felicity asked as Digg handed Oliver the phone to take a look.

"A young girl, maybe nine or ten. They cut her throat and wrists open to maximize the amount of blood in the water. I'd say they cut her open while holding her over the tank to get as much blood in as possible."

"Let me see." Felicity said hoarsely, holding her hand out for the phone. Oliver and Digg looked uncertain.

"Felicity I don't think-"

"I've probably seen worse than this Oliver. I need to confirm something." Oliver gave her a questioning look but handed the phone over anyway. Felicity had to take one glance at the picture and she already knew her suspicions were right. The girl in the photo was the young girl she and Roy had run into the forest with earlier. Felicity put a hand over her mouth, eyes filling with tears.

"It's her." She said quietly.

"It's who?" Felicity realized that with all the commotion and Roy getting hurt and her falling asleep, she never did tell them why she went into the forest in the first place.

"The whole reason I ran out into the woods in the first place was because of this little girl, who claimed her mother was hurt somewhere in the woods. I believed her because it never crossed my mind that the Triad would employ, not only children, but those of a different nationality. We went with her to help but she tipped us off that something was wrong. She felt guilty about leading us in there to the Triad because we were so nice to her. She felt we didn't deserve whatever punishment the Triad was going to dish out on us. I guess they found what she did and they killed her for it." Felicity said sadly. She handed the phone back to Digg and made her way over to the kitchen sinks where she placed her hands on the edge and leaned over in defeat. Oliver silently motioned for Digg to give him a minute. Oliver started to make his way over when Felicity turned and leaned against the sink.

"I'm scared." She said confidently. Oliver stopped and gave her a confused expression. "They succeeded. They win. I'm truly and properly _scared_. Terrified even. The attack the first night here, the men at the mall, the guy at the party, the attack today and the body in the water tank? All either attempts on my life or attempts to scare me. I am finally terrified that I might actually lose my life one of these days. Even in the house of a Bratva Captain, with the best security they're able to get to me. To touch me and my life."

"We'll figure something out-"

"No." Felicity said sharply. "I already know what I want. I'm tired of being weak, of letting them get to me, of letting them scare me. I want to be strong. Stronger than what my father taught me. But I need you. Will you help me become strong Oliver?" Oliver looked at the determination on Felicity's face, the will to do whatever it took to be safe again, on her own terms, and his chest filled with pride.

"You want to learn how defend yourself?" Oliver asked.

"Is that suspicion I'm hearing?" Felicity asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Pride." Oliver clarified. Felicity's arms dropped in slight shock, her bottom lip curling inward to be bit by her teeth. Oliver let out a small laugh at her expression and strode over to her, one of his hands landing on her now clean shoulder.

"I would be honoured to help you be able to defend yourself and fight. You and I can work together, as partners, and figure all this out. We'll find out who is behind all of this, together." Felicity smiled, lip still bitten.

"Do you know how unstoppable we would be?" She asked, bouncing on her toes to Oliver's amusement. "As soon as Mourning's over I'll be able to use my computers again and with my technology skills and your knowledge and experience we could find this guy no problem." Oliver smiled a bit, mirroring a fraction of Felicity's excitement. His smile fell a little when an idea came across his mind and Felicity raised a concerned eyebrow at him.

"I think we should have a backup plan in case this guy is better than we anticipate."

"What kind of backup plan?" Felicity asked, a little worried by the solemn look on his face.

"They managed to get onto our property Felicity and even into the house. No matter what security protocols I put up and in place, they manage to walk through it. Digg and I have concluded that someone within the Bratva _has_ to be helping the Triad get the information they need. So we can't trust anyone here."

"Then what are you suggesting?"

"I'm suggesting that we go to the one person we know that we can trust 100%. We need to go to Russia to see Anatoly Kynazev."

 

Next!

-Good Olicity stuff!

-No more fake sexual fantasies! (Sorry for constantly getting your hopes up then dashing them) Everything from here on out is real!

-More talk of Russia trip (woot woot)

-Oh no Olicity stuff!

-Oliver's a little insensitive


	14. Makes Me Wonder

**"Makes Me Wonder"**  

_[Verse]_  
I wake up with blood-shot eyes  
Struggled to memorize  
The way it felt between your thighs  
Pleasure that made you cry  
Feels so good to be bad  
Not worth the aftermath, after that  
After that  
Try to get you back

_[Bridge]_  
I still don't have the reason  
And you don't have the time  
And it really makes me wonder  
If I ever gave a fuck about you

_[Chorus]_  
Give me something to believe in  
Cause I don't believe in you anymore  
Anymore  
I wonder if it even makes a difference to try  
(Yeah)  
So this is goodbye

_[Verse]_  
God damn my spinning head  
Decisions that made my bed  
Now I must lay in it  
And deal with things I've left unsaid  
I want to dive into you  
Forget what you're going through  
I get behind, make your move  
Forget about the truth

_[Bridge]_  
I still don't have the reason  
And you don't have the time  
And it really makes me wonder  
If I ever gave a fuck about you

_[Chorus]_  
Give me something to believe in  
Cause I don't believe in you anymore  
Anymore  
I wonder if it even makes a difference,  
It even makes a difference to try  
And you told me how you're feeling  
But I don't believe it's true anymore  
Anymore  
I wonder if it even makes a difference to cry  
(Oh no)  
So this is goodbye

_[Breakdown]_  
I've been here before  
One day I'll wake up  
And it won't hurt anymore  
You caught me in a lie  
I have no alibi  
The words you say don't have a meaning  
Cause

_[Bridge]_  
I still don't have the reason  
And you don't have the time  
And it really makes me wonder  
If I ever gave a fuck about you  
And I...and so this is goodbye

_[Chorus]_  
Give me something to believe in  
Cause I don't believe in you anymore  
Anymore  
I wonder if it even makes a difference,  
It even makes a difference to try  
And you told me how you're feeling  
But I don't believe it's true anymore  
Anymore  
I wonder if it even makes a difference to cry  
(Oh no)  
So this is goodbye  
So this is goodbye, yeah  _[x3]_  
(Oh no)

 

_Three Days until the end of Mourning_

***

Felicity sighed and rolled over, fully rested and content. It took a moment for her to realize that she wasn't in her own bed. She sat up in alarm but breathed out in relief as last night came back to her.

Having another shower (blood free this time), asking Oliver if she could stay with him for the night, him agreeing eagerly (although he tried to play it off), falling asleep with him wrapped around her. Speaking of Oliver, he wasn't in the bed. She looked around his bedroom, looking for signs of him but the soft sound of the shower running, which she had ignored before, told her exactly where he was.

She pulled her knees up to her chests, hugging them. Sleeping next to Oliver was nice, he was like her own personal heat source and he really was a cuddlier. Felicity didn't know what this made them, from the shower with him yesterday and sleeping in his bed, she wasn't sure what to call them. The domesticity of that moment, waking up in his bed, waiting for him to get out of the shower, was calming and almost felt normal and easy. And that scared Felicity. She could easily fall into a routine like this, spending time with Oliver, doing everything with him.

The door to the bathroom opened, steam and a shirtless Oliver emerging from the opening. Felicity licked her lips as her eyes danced over the expanse of his naked chest, following the path of his muscles downward until her view was blocked by the towel wrapped around his hips. This was definitely a pro to waking up in Oliver Queen's room.

"You're up." Oliver said, approaching the bed.

"Um hm," Felicity hummed softly. "Did you have a nice shower?"

"Very nice." Oliver stopped at the foot of the bed, crossing his arms over his chest and watching her. Felicity atilted her head.

"What?"

"Nothing." He said with a simple shoulder shrug. Felicity narrowed her eyes a little, telling that he had something in that head of his but she let it go. She yawned and stretched, raising her arms so her tank top lifted to show a strip of her stomach.

"Your bed is really soft." Felicity commented, falling back to lay in it. "It's like a giant hug. I'm never getting out." Oliver raised an eyebrow.

"Is that so?" Felicity nodded into his pillow, burrowing herself deeper into the mattress. Felicity felt the bed shift, and she opened her eyes to look down the bed at Oliver. He had placed a knee on the bed, fingers just touching the mattress to help balance himself. He was smiling wickedly and Felicity pulled the comforter tighter around herself in an act of defiance. Oliver was up to the head of the bed in a flash, somehow managing to keep the towel on. Felicity laughed, covering herself with the blanket, trying to hide from him.

"This is my bed Felicity." Oliver said, blanketing himself over her so she couldn't escape. "You'll have to get out of eventually."

"No I don't." Felicity said, her voice muffled under the covers. "You're the Bratva Captain, you have work to do. I can lounge around all day."

"Really?" Oliver growled. Felicity shrieked with laughter as Oliver grabbed her through the covers and pulled her with him off the bed. The comforter hit the floor as Oliver got a grip on Felicity. He held her by the waist, leaving her off the ground and slightly taller than him.

"I was comfy!" Felicity protested, a smile on her face. Oliver smiled back, feeling loose and happy. Felicity wiggled in his grasp, hands pushing at his shoulders. "Put me down." She demanded.

"No." Felicity frowned, wiggling more and pushing so much that Oliver lost his balance and landed back on his bed with Felicity on top of him. They both laughed, both surprised at how easy the sounds came when they were around each other. Felicity's hands were on the bed, above Oliver's shoulders, with her knees bracketing his waist.

"If I had known getting a clean slate with you would end up with me on top of you, I would have done it sooner." Felicity cringed, having obviously shoved her foot in her mouth. "I meant getting the upper hand, like having you at my mercy- I'm mean disposal! Not mercy, that sounds a little-"

"Felicity." Oliver interrupted. She looked down at him to find him staring intently up at her, his mouth open slightly to take in air. He sat up suddenly, Felicity sliding into his lap, knees pressing into the mattress, leaving them perched on the edge of the bed. Her hands landed on his shoulders to keep her from falling backwards, hands warming against his hot skin. His skin was still slightly damp, his chest rising rapidly as his hands slid up and over her hips, resting against her back. Felicity could feel the heat radiating off him from his hands and chest through her tank top and she was suddenly very aware that the only keeping Oliver from being fully naked under her was his towel, which was far enough down his hips to begin with.

Oliver applied pressure on her back, pulling her firmly against him. Felicity gasped, breasts flush against Oliver's chest, nails digging into his shoulder. He was looking up at her like she was the most beautiful piece of art he had ever seen, refusing to look away for a second, like she might disappear.

"Felicity, I-" Oliver looked up at her in awe, fumbling for words, struggling for the right thing to say.

"Yes Oliver?" She prompted, leaning forward, hair falling around them.

"I'm so sorry." He said, ashamed. Felicity tilted her head.

"Sorry about what?"

"About everything. Being brash and rude, not making you feel welcome in my home, keeping things from you- God Felicity, the list goes on. I've screwed up so much, I don't think I deserve you." Felicity smiled the tiniest bit, confusing Oliver all to hell.

"How about I decide whether you deserve me or not. As for all the things you've done, I've done some pretty stupid stuff too. Running outside, putting myself in danger, trusting the wrong people, going after that little girl..." Felicity trailed off, shaking her head. "But how about you show how sorry you are and I can do the same. If you feel so badly about this Oliver, then make it up to me." Felicity ran her hands over his hair and down his neck, cupping his face and tilting it further up towards her.

"Deal?" She asked. Oliver breathed out shakily.

"God yes," Oliver surged upwards to kiss her but there was a knock on the door before they could. Oliver squeezed his eyes shut in dismay and anger.

"Who is it?" He yelled out.

"Thea!" The younger Queen said loudly from the other side of the door. "Is Felicity with you? She wasn't in her room." Oliver groaned, head falling back.

"Evil little cockblocker." Oliver muttered. Felicity bit her lip and scooted backwards until she could put her feet on the ground, stepping away from Oliver until she was at a respectable distance.

"Come on in Thea!" Felicity yelled. Thea swung the door open and took in the scene before her. Oliver sitting on the bed in a towel and Felicity standing at a distance.

"Did the two of you have sex?" Oliver and Felicity's mouths dropped open, surprisingly shocked that this was Thea's first question.

"No!" Felicity said.

"Really?" Thea asked. "Because you look like you have sex hair." She pointed at Felicity's head. Felicity reached up to pat her tangled locks down and frowned at her friend.

"No, it's just bed head."

"Really?" Thea said again, tilting her head disbelievingly. Oliver sighed.

"What do you want Thea?"

"Roy wants to talk to Felicity." Felicity startled before stepping forward, worried.

"Do I need to go right now? Is he okay?" Thea waved her hand in front of her, dismissingly.

"No, he just wants to talked to you once you're dressed and ready. I'll be there when you get to his room." Thea turned and walked out. "Oh, and we'll have breakfast in the room for you!" She yelled over her shoulder. Once she was gone Oliver and Felicity looked at each other.

"Well I guess I should get dress and ready." Oliver nodded, reluctantly getting off the bed as they both moved to get dressed, Felicity changing in the bathroom. By the time Felicity was done, Oliver had already left, for breakfast or work, Felicity didn't know. She threw on a dark purple blouse and black pencil skirt that feel just a little past her knees. She was putting on her glasses and opening the door when she found four men waiting in the hallway for her. Felicity paused, caught off ground.

"Um, Mr. Queen's already downstairs I think. If you're looking for him he should be in his office." The four guards looked at one another in confusion before one of them spoke up.

"No, Miss. Smoak," He said slowly. "We're here for you. We're your new security detail." Felicity's mouth dropped open.

"All four of you?" They all nodded simultaneously, like robots.

"Yes Miss. Smoak."

"Why?"

"Because the circumstances here have changed. The Triad managed to get into the property and with Roy in the state he's in, Mr. Queen thought it'd be wise to amp up the security, especially when it comes to you."

"I knew that I would probably get another guard because Roy is out of commission and maybe an extra just to be safe, but are four of you really necessary?" The men looked at each other before nodding slowly.

"Mr. Queen believes this is necessary." Felicity shook her head disbelievingly and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Well I guess Mr. Queen will be getting a talk from me after I go see Roy." She started to walk down the hallway, two of the guards walking ahead of her and two behind. Felicity rolled her eyes. "Geez, you'd think I was the president or something." They made their way down the hall, Felicity silently fuming.

Once she got to Roy's room, she was ready for a little time away from her guards. However they stopped her before she could enter the room, opening the door and checking to make sure the room was secure. Felicity huffed angrily and threw the door open, ignoring the other two guards protests.

"Oh for gods sake! This is ridiculous! I'm going to be fine, the room is secure so get out!" The guards looked at each other before one spoke up.

"Um, Mr. Queen told us we were supposed to have eyes in you at all times." Felicity let out a small, aggravated scream into her hands before she dropped them.

"Fine! Two of you stay by the door and the other two can stand in the corners. I'm invoking the seen-and-not-heard clause. No speaking to me, or any of us for that matter. I'm sorry you got dealt the shitty hand of having to watch over someone who doesn't want you here."

"Actually Miss. Smoak this is an honour-"

"Shut up! I am so beyond angry right now." She pointed at the guard who had just spoken. "You can guard the door from the hallway with one of your buddies and the other two can stand silently in the corner." When none of the guards moved, she pointed at the door and used her loud voice.

"Go!" The guards scrambled to their positions, door closing. Felicity sighed into her hands and flopped down onto the foot of Roy's bed.

"I actually asked Thea to get you here so I could warn you about this, but it seems the guards were more eager than I thought about protecting you." Felicity rolled to her side and looked at Roy and Thea at the head of the bed, snuggled up together.

"Thanks for wanting to warn me. This is beyond aggravating." Felicity picked up a piece of toast and took a bite. After a few minutes of eating and small talk Felicity pushed off the bed and headed to the washroom. Both of the guards in the room followed her to the point where they almost enter the washroom with her.

"Woah!" She said, almost hitting them with the door. "What are you doing?"

"Protecting you." They said simply.

"By following me into the washroom?" She asked. The men looked at each other, unsure of an answer. She realized they were actually going to follow her into the washroom while she relieved her bladder.

"Oh my god!" She yelled. "That's it!" She shoved past the guards and stormed out the door. The guards on the other side leapt out of her way but followed her down the hall. She made her way to Oliver's office and slammed the door open. Digg and Oliver looked up at her and Oliver stood, seeing how angry she was.

"What kind of security detail requires them to follow me into the bathroom?" Felicity yelled, stomping up the steps to Oliver's desk. "What's next? Are they supposed to watch me get dressed too? Or have a shower?" Oliver looked startled at Felicity's outburst but his expression grew dark, turning his glare on the guards.

"I told you to watch her. Not to invade her privacy."

"With all do respect sir, you told us not to take our eyes off her-"

"I didn't mean for you follow her everywhere. You could have at least a little human decency." Oliver sighed angrily, and pinched the bridge of his nose. "You're all more incompetent than I thought. You are relieved of your duty to watch Miss. Smoak. You can now return to your regular jobs and I'll try and find some men with some common sense." The guards looked dismayed and stunned that Oliver was dismissing them.

"But sir, if you could just give us a chance-"

"We are talking about someone's life here!" Oliver roared, coming around the desk. "If you can't even figure out that there is an extent to my orders than how can I trust you to make smart decisions? Get out of my sight." The men bowed their heads and exited the room.

"I'm sorry Felicity, I thought they were smarter than that. I'll have new guards assigned to you as soon as possible. And I'll have Diggle join the mix to keep the new guards in line." Oliver moved closer to Felicity, and placed his hands on her shoulders. "I promise you'll be safe."

"Yeah," Felicity said uncertain. "About that. Could we lower the number of guards that I have? I understand that I need more protection and with Roy out of commission that means someone to replace him and maybe just one more? I feel like I'm being suffocated with how many I had." Oliver stepped back and shook his head.

"I can't let anything happen to you Felicity. You'll have four new guards and Diggle. Nothing's going to happen to you ever again." Felicity clenched her fists and turned to Digg.

"Digg, could you give us a minute?" He nodded and placed a hand on her shoulder, leaning in close.

"You know he means well. With everything that's happened, your safety is his number one priority even if it clouds his judgement." He patted her shoulder once before walking out and closing the door. Felicity turned back to Oliver, who stood on the other side of the desk.

"I want two guards." Felicity demanded. "Digg and someone else. I'm up to my armpits in guards right now and if anything, I feel less safe because I don't know these people." Oliver slowly came back around the desk.

"You'll get to know these guards just like you did with Roy." Felicity let out a frustrated scream, fingers slipping into her hair to clutch handfuls of it.

"That's not the point! I don't want to know them! I want things to be normal!"

"Things haven't been normal for a while Felicity." Oliver came closer, hand reaching slightly for her. Felicity moved to the side, away from him, not letting his stupidly handsome face distract her.

"Why can't they be as normal as possible? Why did I have to give up my life because my father died? Why can't I have the things that I want? Why does everything have to be so damn complicated?" Felicity screamed, absentmindedly backing up towards the bookcase as Oliver followed her.

"I hate change Oliver and since I've gotten here, I've been ready to scream at the top of my lungs because I've been moved out of my home and into the house of a man that aggravates me and leaves me breathless at the same time. The hot and cold has confused me all to hell and I'm just so done with all the complicated things and all the changes and you and your infuriatingly handsome face and body and I hate that you're exactly what I want even though Bratva rules basically say we can't be together-"

" _Felicity_." Oliver growled lowly. Felicity's back hit the bookcase and Oliver stopped to loom over her, not that she noticed.

"And there you go again with the sexy growling-" Oliver's hands surged forward, grabbing Felicity's face to tilt it up to meet his. Their lips crushed together, uncoordinated and sloppy, Felicity gasping, surprised. Her eyes slammed closed, falling into the sensation as Oliver's teeth scrapped across her bottom lip, his body pressing against her, pushing her into the bookcase so hard that books fell off the shelf. Felicity reached out, hands blindly grasping at the lapels of his jacket, hulling him closer, lips sliding together. His tongue stroked inside her mouth, tongue taking warm movements against hers. Felicity returned his moves in equal fervor, biting down hard on his bottom lip, enjoying the moan that escaped from the back of his throat.

Oliver's body was tense against hers, every muscle hard with control, even though his moves were uncoordinated and obviously, spur of the movement. Oliver turned his head, deepening the kiss and biting down on her lip, tongue soothing the bite as Felicity moaned into his mouth.

The sound broke his control and Oliver's hands flashed down to grab the backs of Felicity's legs, hauling her up. Felicity let out a little yelp of surprise at the sudden movement but the sound was easily swallow by Oliver's mouth. Felicity understood what he wanted, wrapping her legs around his waist which made her tight skirt slip high up her legs. Her hands moved from his chest to his neck so she could keep them connected, teeth nipping at his lip.

Oliver turned, mouth still insistent against Felicity's, hands gripping her now bare legs and stumbled blindly to his desk. His thighs smacked into the hard wood edge of the desk and he reached down quickly with one hand to swipe the contents of his desk out of the way to set Felicity down. Papers and pens went flying to the ground and a glass paper weight shattered as it fell off the desk. Oliver set her down and pressed himself between her legs, hands pulling her blouse from the waistband of her skirt, while Felicity pulled at his tie and tried to undo it. Oliver's mouth moved across her jaw as his hands gipped her waist, his mouth placing hot kisses down her throat. Felicity threw her head back, hands stilling from where they were unbuttoning his white shirt and drew her lip inwards to bite it, moaning.

One of her hands moved to his neck, nails digging in as he sucked on her skin. She rolled her hips, rubbing against the bulge in his slacks, making him groan which sent vibrations across her skin. She did it again, feeling confident, and Oliver responded by rubbing himself against her core, Felicity gasping into his ear as the rough material of his pants pushed against her.

"Oliver," She gasped out.

"Oh God Felicity," He groaned into her neck. He pulled back and grabbed fistfuls of her blouse, yanking. The shirt torn open, buttons flying across the room as Felicity sucked in a breath when the cold air hit her heated skin. Oliver dipped his head to kiss along the swell of her breast. One of Felicity's hands flew behind her to land on the desk to help keep her upright, while the other held his head against her breast. Oliver rocked into her again, sending sparks through her body, which was almost too much when combined with his sinful mouth sucking on her skin.

Felicity was so on edge, all wound up and ready to burst or break or for all she knew, completely fall apart. Her life had taken a complete one eighty and she needed something that she could hold onto to. She needed something concrete in her life and the closest thing she had was Oliver. He was always there and he would always be there, whether he tried to push her away or not. Oliver was keeping her afloat and him being with her right now was what she needed.

"Felicity," Oliver pulled his mouth off her skin with as much control as it seemed he could muster. His head stayed bowed,his forehead resting against her collar bone, gasping breathes leaving his body.

"I can't-I need-" He stuttered. Felicity rolled her hips in response, rubbing herself against his painfully hard length. Oliver's breath stuttered, his fingers digging into her back.

"Oh God Felicity," He choked out. "Please-"

There was a firm knocking on the door and both Oliver and Felicity whipped their heads in that direction. The door didn't open but Digg's voice drifted through.

"Oliver, I don't mean to interrupt your talk with Felicity but your meeting is about to start." Oliver straightened, his demeanour strong and sure, the complete opposite of how he was a second ago when, he too, looked like he was ready to fall apart.

"Do you have everything set up?" He said loudly for Digg to hear through the door.

"Yeah, do you want me to meet you in the room?"

"That'd be great. Give me one minute then I'll be there." Felicity could hear Digg retreating footsteps before everything was silent. Oliver stepped away from her without a word, not even looking at her. He began buttoning up his shirt as he walked around his desk looking for a certain file. It was like he was on auto pilot, his mind somewhere else as he picked up several papers and shoved them in a file folder. He muttered some things under his breath as he moved about the office collecting different pieces of paper.

Once he had everything he needed, he went to leave, giving Felicity the fastest kiss on the cheek she was almost sure it didn't happen. For a moment Felicity thought he was going to leave without saying anything to her but he stopped halfway and turned around. Felicity breathed a sigh of relief and was about to joke about her previous concern when Oliver bent over to grab a pen that had been discarded on the floor, then promptly turned and left the room, still muttering to himself as he wrote something down in the file in his hand.

The door slammed shut behind him, Felicity flinching at the sound, leaving her alone in the room. She sat there, numb with shock. As she gingerly, and some what shamefully, brought her legs together, she looked around the room, not knowing what to do with herself.

Oliver had kissed the hell out of her, then a couple words from Digg had him abandoning her in the office. She found the energy and common sense to push off the edge of the desk, slowly putting her feet on the ground. She held onto the desk for support, legs feeling shaky and weak. As she looked around at the contents of the floor, the books and papers and even her shoes which had fallen off at some point, a weight settled on her chest.

She had just made out with Oliver and at the drop of a hat he was gone, leaving her with this mess, not to mention leaving her a mess. Skirt ripped up the sides, blouse torn open and she didn't even want to think about her hair. She was going to have to walk all the upstairs to change looking like this and who knew what kind of looks she'd get or the judgements that would be made upon her if anyone saw her. And they had every right to judge her since she still had a few days of Mourning to go and yet she was so ready to just give that all up because Oliver felt so good and he was what she needed and- _oh God._

Oliver had just abandoned her.

He had left her in here.

Using her and tossing her aside.

Like she was nothing.

God, she felt like an idiot. She thought that he would be able to keep her together. That he could keep her from tearing apart at the seams. But he couldn't help her if he didn't care and she had actually believed that he cared about her. Well, she guessed she was wrong.

She covered her mouth with her hand as tears welled up in her eyes. The weight grew heavier as she picked up her shoes, her other hand clutching her shirt closed, and headed towards the door. She stepped lightly around the objects strewn across the floor before yanking the door open and bolting towards the stairs and up to her room. She slammed her bedroom door closed behind her once she reached it and leaned her forehead against the wood, gasping sobs forcing their way out of her chest.

She felt rejected.

Like she was disposable to Oliver and could be tossed aside like a crumpled up piece of paper. She dropped her shoes in defeat and turned to put her back against the door. She slid down it, hands grasping at her blouse and her legs curling inward, making her as small as possible as she cried on the floor.

***

"Miss. Felicity?" Felicity bolted upright from her position on her bed where she had managed to settle herself after the tears had exhausted her. She had managed to change her clothes before climbing into bed for a much needed nap. Raisa knocked softly on the door before opening it slowly.

"Miss. Felicity?" Raisa saw her sitting on the bed and the state of her face. Her face softened with sympathy before she turned and closed the door behind her.

"What is it Raisa?" Felicity asked, pushing her tangled hair away from her face.

"It is time for dinner." She said, hands clasped in front of her. "Oh." Felicity said, eyes darting to the clock and seeing it was 6:30pm. She sighed inwardly and shifted on the bed. Raisa took a step forward and gestured to the edge of the bed.

"Can I?" Felicity nodded hastily and moved over to make more room for the older woman to sit. "Would you like me to bring dinner to you?" Felicity startled for a second before speaking.

"You can do that?"

"Of course. I will say that you are not well and they will not question it. Yet," She paused before taking Felicity's hand. "Your friends will come to see if you are okay and the person who has made you cry will too. So you have a choice Miss. Felicity. Stay here and wait for them to come and see you. Or go down to eat and get it over with." Felicity dipped her head, feeling ashamed.

"Do I really look that bad? I mean, bad enough that you could tell I was crying?"

"Yes Miss. Felicity." Raisa said solemnly. "Но я думаю, что тот, кто сделал вас расстроен придет к вам лицом в конечном итоге , и я думаю, что было бы лучше , если вы столкнулись их в первую очередь. [But I think that whoever has made you upset will come to face you eventually and I think it would be best if you confronted them first.]" Felicity tilted her head at Raisa and the Russian woman waved her hands dismissingly.

"Не смотрите на меня, как я знаю, что вы говорите на русском и я также знаю, что вы говорите это очень хорошо. [Do not look at me like that I know that you speak Russian and I also know that you speak it very well.]"

"Откуда ты знаешь? [How did you know?]"

"Существует очень мало, что происходит в этом доме , что я не знаю, о. [There is very little that goes on in this house that I don't know about.]" She smiled softly. "Come downstairs and eat. And if this person gives you anymore trouble, they'll have to deal with me." Felicity's mouth twitch in a smile.

"What if that person is your Bratva Captain Boss?"

"He does not scare me Miss. Felicity and he knows better than to make me angry." Felicity smiled more and Raisa stood, taking Felicity's hands and helping her out of the bed.

"Come, come. Fix your eyes and I will see you down the stairs." Felicity nodded as Raisa patted her cheek. Felicity redid some of her makeup before she slid her glasses back into place. She wore her father's big cardigan over a simple black top and leggings, the cardigan making her feel safer.

When she got downstairs, people were milling about, not quite ready and seated for supper. Felicity didn't see Oliver anywhere and for a moment she thought that whatever occupied him earlier was keeping him all the way through dinner. When she felt a pair of hands come to rest on her shoulders from behind, she knew she was wrong. She jumped a bit, taken off guard.

"I didn't mean to scare you." Oliver said, coming up from behind to stand flush against her. He dipped his head, his mouth resting against her ear.

"Evening," He muttered against her skin. He dropped his mouth to her shoulder, where her sweater had fallen away, and kissed her skin. Oliver seemed relaxed and at ease with being around her. He did it again, like he couldn't help himself, sipping at her skin lightly. Felicity’s head tipped involuntarily to the side to give him more access before she moved, a little uncomfortable, and stepped away from him as she hastily pulled her sweater back over her shoulder.

"We should go to dinner." She said, not looking back at him. He moved forward, his hand almost touching her back before he stopped short. Moira had come to stand in the doorway between the hallway and the dining room. She calmly raised an eyebrow at the pair before turning to enter the dining room. Felicity let out a breath, feeling the judgement Moira had left hanging in the air.

"C'mon," Oliver said in into her ear. "Let's go eat." Felicity walked ahead of him, refusing to look back. She still felt hurt that Oliver had left her for who knows what reason, and now she felt anger rising in her chest because he was acting like hadn't done anything wrong. She also started to feel the weight in her chest worsen as she entered the dining room to find the majority of the seats vacant. Moira was seated at one end of the table and Digg sat next to the head of the table, which Felicity knew was Oliver's seat. Felicity didn't want to sit near Oliver but she sure as hell didn't want to be anywhere near Moira and her judgemental stare. Although Oliver pretty much made her mind up for her by guiding her over to the empty chair across from Digg. Oliver sat down at the head of the table, and motioned for Raisa to begin serving them.

The dishes were set in front of them and the wine was poured and they all began eating silently. Felicity sipped periodically at her red wine and eat her dinner bit by little bit, not feeling well enough to eat a lot.

"Where's Thea?" Moira asked, looking up at Oliver.

"I'm not sure. Felicity?" He asked, his hand finding her knee under the table, rubbing affectionately over it. Felicity crossed her legs immediately, pulling his hand from her leg.

"I don't know." She said in a small voice. "I've been sleeping for the past couple hours." Raisa entered the dining room with the wine bottle and Moira turned her head slightly to speak to the woman.

"Raisa do you know where Thea is?"

"She said she was to eat up with Mr. Roy. I brought them a tray of food Mrs. Queen." Moira nodded, obviously not happy with the answer she got.

"Well, I guess I'll have to talk to her about that." Moira said, dabbing the corner of her mouth with her napkin. Oliver sighed and looked at his mother with a hopeful face.

"Do you have to ruin this for her?" Moira looked a little startled by the question before setting her wine glass down to look at Oliver incredulously. "I'm surprised you're so for this relationship she has. It is after all one of your men who she's been seeing." Oliver looked pointedly at his mother.

"Does it bother me that they formed this relationship behind my back? Yes. If I had known earlier, would I have stopped it? Yes. But it's too late for that at this point and I think that we should just let her have this. Roy'll be out of commission for a few months so I don't see the harm in this."

"Don't see the harm?" Moira asked, voice rising. "This is one of the lower Bratva boys we're talking about here. You expect me to stand aside as she dates a lower class man? I won't stand for it." She finished determinately.

"You couldn't have stopped it." Felicity spoke softly into her salad. Even though her head was down, she spoke loud enough for everyone to hear.

"Excuse me?" Moira asked, glaring at Felicity. Normally Felicity would back down but these were her friends they were talking about and she wouldn't sit idly by as Moira Queen made assumptions about Roy.

"Try as you might, this relationship would have happened either way. Thea has been kept under lock and key most her life, all of you hiding her away to keep her safe. It's not a surprise that Thea fell for a member of the household. The people in her and this house are mostly what she knows, this is her safe place. Once you brought an appropriately aged member of the house to Thea's attention, she would latch onto them and get to know them because she hasn't seen too many people. Why do you think she was so excited I was coming to stay? I'm not saying that this was the reason that she fell for Roy, I'm simply saying that it's the reason she got to know him so well. I also think that you should let her have this relationship. She's been through a lot and seen a lot and losing her father has probably left a hole in her that she feels the need to fill. She needs love and companionship. She finds that easily with Roy. I know from experience that the hole needs to be filled for her to survive." Moira looked at her for a moment before disposing of her napkin on the table.

"I don't care for your opinions Miss. Smoak or how about how you think I should go about dealing with my daughter." She pushed away from the table and stood. "Don't act like you know her better than I do. I'm her mother." Moira said venomously and cold before exiting the room.

Felicity felt tired and was some what grateful for Mrs. Queen's exit from the dining room because it let the others know it was appropriate for them to leave to. Felicity stood up quickly, dropping her napkin on the table dejectedly and headed for the stairs. She was almost there when Oliver caught up to her, his hand lightly touching her elbow as he managed to stand in front of her.

"Hey," He said softly. "I'm sorry my mother chewed you out like that." Oliver rubbed his hands over her arm in a comforting manner. Felicity moved to the side, out of his grasp, and moved past him up the stairs.

"It's fine." Felicity said over her shoulder, aware that Oliver was following her.

"I just wanted her to know that Thea can make her own decisions and sometimes people need others to help get better. Both Thea and Roy need each other right now." Felicity walked down their hallway towards her room. She grabbed the door handle, ready to turn it and enter her room. She wanted to solve things with Oliver and express her concerns but at that moment she was tired and just wanted to sleep.

"I'm going to go to bed." She said, facing the door, Oliver standing behind her. Hand tightening on the knob to turn it, Felicity almost got the door open and escaped Oliver before he lightly put his hands on her hips, spinning her to face him.

"You don't need to sleep in your room Felicity." He said, stepping closer, not quite touching chest to chest. "If I remember correctly, you raved about how comfortable my bed was this morning." He smiled at her, a genuine, easy smile that turned Felicity's stomach because she could not comprehend how he could smile at her when he abandoned her earlier.

"Besides, I have some news for you that I think you'll like." His hands dropped from her waist, one hand finding hers and tugging her lightly along behind him.

"I should grab some pyjamas-" Felicity said, jerking her thumb behind her.

"It's okay, you can wear some of my stuff. My shirts and pants are soft like my bed." He smiled at her over his shoulder, before opening his bedroom door. Oliver pulled Felicity into the room and let go of her hand to open his closet and grab some items for both of them.

"I have a pair of sweatpants that I should have given away a long time ago since I grew out of them." He handed her the sweatpants and a short sleeve black shirt. "I'll change in the bathroom and you can tell me when you're ready for me to come out, okay?" He still had that damn smile on his face and Felicity was starting to think that either Oliver didn't recognize that he had done something wrong or he thought what he had done wasn't wrong. Felicity just knew that she'd have to set him straight.

"Oliver, I think we should talk-"

"I know. And we'll talk when we're both ready for bed. Like I told you before, I have some news for you." His smile got bigger, like whatever he was going to tell her was the best news she'd ever heard. Oliver rounded the bed towards the bathroom, his own pair of sweatpants in hand.

"Remember to knock when you're ready." Oliver closed the bathroom door, leaving Felicity alone in the room. For half a second she thought about turning and bolting out the door but she knew that Oliver would just go looking for her, maybe even think that something bad had happened to her and Felicity didn't want to cause panic. Plus she knew she had to get this sorted out with Oliver. Whatever this was between the two of them needed communication, truth and nothing could be one sided.

Felicity quickly changed and knocked on the bathroom to signal for Oliver that it was okay to exit. He opened the door, dressed in just his sweats, his other clothes in hand. He walked past her to drop his clothes on a vacant chair before sitting on the bed and reaching his hands out for Felicity. She timidly walked forward until she was within his reach and Oliver grabbed her hands, dragging her closer. Oliver smiled up at her, his hands smoothing up her arms.

"You had something you wanted to tell me?" Felicity prompted.

"That can wait a little longer. I've had to go most my day without seeing you, I just want to spend some time together. Alone." Felicity understood his meaning and was about to step back and tell him to wait, to let them talk first when Oliver stood, hands grabbing her waist and switching there positions so she was the one on the bed. Oliver leaned down, his hands landing on the bed and bracketing Felicity in. As he lowered himself to the bed, Felicity leaned back until she resorted to shifting backwards on the bed to get away from him. Oliver obviously saw it as her leading him further onto the bed.

"I've been thinking about you all day." Oliver said, successfully blanketing himself over Felicity, her leaning back on her elbows, one of his legs in between hers. He moved until his mouth was against her neck.

"I missed you. The way you felt against me," Oliver kissed her throat. It felt good and Felicity hated herself for liking it.

"The way you moved," Another kiss, higher. His mouth gentle against her skin.

"The beautiful sounds you made." A kiss just under her ear.

"I want to hear those sounds again." He muttered against her ear. He pulled back, smiling before going in for a kiss. Felicity made a noise of panic and pushed at his chest.

"Oliver, wait-" He stopped and looked at her strangely.

"Felicity, what's wrong?" He went from sexy to caring in a second, his hand moving to cup her face. Felicity batted his hand away, scrambling backwards.

"Oliver stop!" She ungracefully fell off the bed, fumbling to her feet and put a few feet between them.

"Felicity, what is it?" Oliver scooted until he was off the bed and standing. He took a step towards her, hand outstretched in worry but Felicity shrunk back. Oliver noticed her scared demeanor and he stopped immediately.

"What's wrong? Did I-" Oliver looked behind him at the bed. "Am I going to fast for you? Do I need to take this slower? Because I can do that Felicity, we can do this at whatever speed you want. I don't want to pressure you into anything." His voice was soft and kind, which made Felicity more frustrated because he wasn't understanding. "I care about you Felicity and I don't want to make you uncomfortable. I want to be straight forward about us-"

"Then why did you leave me?" Felicity yelled at him, her frustration peaking, tears pushing their way out of her eyes. Oliver faltered, not understanding.

"I-what?"

"Earlier in your office, we were-we were together and a word from Diggle has you dropping everything and leaving the room! You left me in there without a word of where you were going or anything, except for a practically nonexistent kiss on the cheek! And then I was alone and confused and I had to walk upstairs looking like I had just had sex, which I hadn't and I'm so lucky I didn't bump into anyone because lord knows what your mother would have said-"

"Woah, woah, Felicity calm down." Oliver stepped forward quickly, hands on her shoulders. Felicity brushed him off and moved further away.

"Why did you abandon me?" Felicity asked in a small voice. Oliver ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head at himself.

"I'm so sorry Felicity, I didn't even realize-"

"And that's the problem! You say you want this to work but how can it when you won't even spare me a second to explain yourself! We need communication if we have any chance of surviving! The amount of people who will think this is wrong will be like a wall to us, putting up barriers and obstacles just to watch us crash and burn! The Bratva has rules about who a Brtva Captain can marry-" Felicity shut her mouth, grimacing inwardly. "Who a Bratva Captain can have a relationship with." Felicity corrected herself. "This relationship is going to be impossible to begin with so we both need to be on the same page and the same side."

"I am on your side!" Oliver said exasperated. "I've always been on your side Felicity and I always will be. What do you need from me? What can I do to fix this?"

"First of all, promise that you'll never leave me like that again. That next time you'll spare me the common curtesy of a few words explaining why you're leaving."

"Done." Oliver said quickly.

"Second, would you please tell me why you left in the first place? What was so damn important that you had to go so quickly?" Felicity asked crossing her arms.

"Your safety." Oliver said simply. Felicity rolled her eyes.

"That seems to be the go-to answer these days."

"I'm serious." Oliver said. He sighed and moved back to sit on his bed. "It's the news I was so excited to tell you tonight. I pulled one of my favours and I got a conference call with Russia." Felicity's jaw dropped in shock at how quickly he had managed to obtain a phone call with the Headquarters in Russia.

"Anatoly?" She asked as she stepped forward, arms dropping. Oliver nodded. "But that's impossible! No one can get a conference with him that fast! Not even my father could and they were best friends since they were kids! We just talked about maybe going to Russia yesterday."

"I know. Like I said, I used one of my favours and I got fifteen minutes to talk with him. But when he realized the amount of danger you're in, he dropped all of his meetings for the rest of the day and we spent the day figuring everything out."

"So, we're going to Russia?" Felicity asked, feeling relieved and excited.

"Yes. Anatoly really loves his goddaughter." Oliver said, looking up with a smile and if he would admit, a little bit of jealous over the connection Felicity and Anatoly had. Felicity smiled a little.

"I love him too and I'll make sure he knows how much I appreciate this when we get there."

"That's why I left so quickly Felicity," Oliver said, standing and approaching her. "And I'm so sorry I was so insensitive. I had a lot on my mind and I knew Anatoly only had a couple minutes to spare. I wanted to get everything figured out in the small amount of time I had to talk to him and I didn't want to waste a second."

"I understand. Anatoly is busy and you had no idea your conversation would end up becoming an all day phone call. But I still wish you had said something to me before you left."

"I know and I'm sorry. I might end up spending the rest of my life making up for today but I think I can live with that." Felicity reached out and wrapped her arms around Oliver's torso, placing her head against his chest and squeezing hard.

"Thank you for figuring all this out and wanting to keep me safe." Oliver hugged her back, pressing his lips to the top of her head.

"I'd do anything for you Felicity and I'll do anything to make it up to you." Felicity smiled and pulled back, placing her hands on Oliver's chest and pushing him back towards the bed.

"You can make it up to me right now." Felicity smiled mischievously and Oliver walked backwards helplessly until his legs hit the bed and Felicity pushed him onto his back. Oliver hit the mattress with a small, amused laugh as Felicity climbed on top of him, straddling his hips and pressing herself down against him.

"You can make it up to me," Felicity purred, grabbing Oliver's hands before they could touch her and pinning them to the mattress. "By being a good little boy and not moving or touching." Oliver groaned in dismay and Felicity smiled wickedly. Her hands let go of his but she held up a finger.

"Remember, stay just like this. I want to explore you a little better." She pressed her palms against his chest, sliding them over his warm skin. Her fingers gingerly traced his scars and tattoos, categorizing them to memory, moving lower and lower until she reached his abs. Her nails scrapped against the hard muscle, the muscles jumping under her touch and Oliver groaned through his teeth, hands fisting in the bed sheet to keep from touching her.

"Felicity, please." Oliver groaned, hips moving and lifting, looking for friction. Felicity rolled her hips, rubbing herself over his hard length, making Oliver hiss through his teeth.

"If you don't stay still, I'll stop." Felicity warned. Oliver froze immediately causing Felicity to laugh lightly. "Well, I guess I now know how to get you to do what I want." She moved her hips torturously slow, Oliver's hands tightening on the sheets to the point of almost ripping them and he bit his tongue to keep from speaking as the tingling sensation began at the base of his spine.

"I've thought about doing this for weeks," Felicity said, pressing down hard against him, heat curling in her belly too. "Ever since that moment between us in the foyer, when you had me against the wall..." Felicity's hands moved further down, touching lightly at the V of his hipbones, which dragged a whimper from the back of Oliver's throat.

"Just because Mourning isn't over yet and I can't have sex, doesn't mean I can't help you." Her fingers crept under the hem of his sweatpants, moving to tug them down. Oliver sat up abruptly, mirroring their position from that morning, with her in his lap on the edge of the bed.

"Felicity..." Oliver breathed out. Felicity smiled and rolled her hips against his, grinding down on him. "I-can you-need more-" Oliver broke off in a groan, shoving his face against her neck. Felicity wrapped her arms around his shoulders, helping her to lift herself off him and push back down. Oliver thrust up against her and she sighed, head tipping back.

"This is-is supposed to be about you." Felicity said, the heat in her belly tightening. Oliver kissed sloppily along her skin, nipping at her shoulder as he chased his release. Felicity's back arched against him as her nails scrapped over his shoulders, urging him on, helping him get there. Oliver's skin felt like it was on fire, his cock straining against his boxers and sweatpants, the materials restricting him. His hips thrust up, he couldn't stop, he didn't want to...

"Yes," Felicity breathed. "Oliver..." His name was like a splash of cold water, making him realize who he was with and what they were doing.

"Felicity," Oliver panted, hands moving to her hips to still them. Felicity stopped with an unhappy whimper and Oliver breathed out shakily.

"Felicity I don't think-oh God," He said hoarsely. "I'm going to regret this later. Felicity I don't think we should do this."

"What?" Felicity laughed out in disbelief. "What do you mean?"

"It's not fair to you if I come and you don't. It's selfish of me."

"No it's not." Felicity shot back. "Oliver, I'm offering-" Her hand reached between them to touch the hem of his sweatpants. He grabbed her hands before they could go further.

"No." Oliver said, his tone determined. "I want to wait until Mourning is over. I don't want to get pleasure if you can't have it too."

"Do you-" Felicity broke off, unsure. "Is that just an excuse? Do you not want to do this with me?" She asked in a small voice, eyes downcast.

"What? No!" Oliver brought his hands up to cup Felicity face, making her look at him. He leaned forward and kissed her softly for the first time. It was slow and purposeful, unlike their other kisses which were rushed and demanding. Oliver took his time to reassure Felicity. He pulled back and leaned his forehead against hers.

"I want to do this with you Felicity. God knows how badly I want this, but I think we should wait. I know I won't enjoy it as much if I can't return the favour." Felicity smiled and nodded.

"Okay," She whispered. "What about this?" She placed her hand lightly over his straining erection and he shifted a bit on the bed. "I'll figure something out. I might want to start off with you getting off me." Felicity laughed softly and got off Oliver, then moved to get into bed.

"I guess all we should do now is sleep." Felicity got under the covers and wiggled until she was comfortable. Oliver smiled at how relaxed she was. Felicity opened her arms towards him.

"Come. Warmth." Oliver chuckled, shutting off the light and scooted across the bed to her, getting under the covers and snuggling up against her, his head on her chest. Felicity wrapped her arms around his shoulders and held him close. As they drifted closer to sleep, Felicity could feel Oliver softening until the soft sounds of his breathing guided her to sleep.

***

 

**Next!**

**-Felicity trains with Oliver! (Did someone say training turned sexy times?)**

**-Moira talks with Felicity about "her intentions with her son"**

**-ONE MORE CHAPTER UNTIL MOURNING IS OVER**


	15. I Found

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiya! I'm so sorry that this chapter is like, seven months late but between school and my new job and spending days or weeks at a time where I struggled to eat or get out of bed, much less write, it's kinda understandable why it's been awhile. But summer is here so I should have more time to write and make chapters!  
> This is the last chapter before Mourning is over!  
> Hugs!  
> -Addie

**"I Found"**   
  


And I'll use you as a warning sign  
That if you talk enough sense then you'll lose your mind  
And I'll use you as a focal point  
So I don't lose sight of what I want  
And I've moved further than I thought I could  
But I missed you more than I thought I would  
And I'll use you as a warning sign  
That if you talk enough sense then you'll lose your mind

And I found love where it wasn't supposed to be  
Right in front of me  
Talk some sense to me  
 _[2x]_

And I'll use you as a makeshift gauge  
Of how much to give and how much to take  
Oh I'll use you as a warning sign  
That if you talk enough sense then you'll lose your mind

Oh and I found love where it wasn't supposed to be  
Right in front of me  
Talk some sense to me

And I found love where it wasn't supposed to be  
Right in front of me  
Talk some sense to me  
 _[3x]_  


 

"Again!" Oliver barked at Felicity's fallen form. Felicity pushed herself up on her elbows on the training mat, blowing a puff of air out. They had been at it for hours, pushing Felicity to her limits as Oliver trained her. And Felicity really was at her limits. She understood that she had asked Oliver to train her, that it meant some rigorous work on her part but this was ridiculous. All this was was Oliver showing her a move and then quickly disarming her and Felicity was getting tired of being thrown to the mats. She felt like all she was doing was getting smacked around and getting more bruises than actual knowledge on how to defend herself. Normally she would enjoy having a sweaty, shirtless Oliver on top of her, but it was coupled with her hitting the ground and him barking orders and improvements at her, and that was less fun.

"How about a break?" Felicity suggested, getting to her knees before standing slowly on sore limbs.

"No, you almost have this move down. You need to push though." Oliver said, widening his stance and raising his arms in defense, waiting for Felicity's attack. She didn't budge.

"Push through? Seriously?" She scoffed at him. Oliver dropped his arms in annoyance and stood straight.

"What? Do you not like my teaching methods?"

"You really don't want me to answer that question. I could go on all day about your teaching methods." Felicity raised her hands in a I'm-done manner and stepped off the mat.

"Where do you think you're going?" Oliver asked angrily, following her.

"I'm grabbing some water because at this point, with how hard you're pushing me, I'm going to pass out from dehydration before I learn anything." Felicity leaned down to the side bench, a couple feet from the training mats and grabbed her water.

"You almost had that move down Felicity. We shouldn't quit while you're ahead." Felicity's eyebrows shot up in surprise and she slowly set down the water bottle in cool rage.

"Shouldn't quit while I'm ahead? Almost had the move down? What move Oliver? The only thing I've learned since we started training a couple hours ago is that the training mats don't really do anything to help soften the blow of hitting the ground. I haven't learned any moves at all because all you do is show me how it should go and then you stop me before I can do the move and you toss me to the ground! You never asked me what I think or want to work on while training with you and you never asked how I learn! I probably do best by learning with muscle memory but I can't very well do that if you stop me from completing the move every time I try and do it!"

"Felicity, you asked me to train you. You said you wanted to be strong and I'm not going to make it easy for you." Oliver said, trying to calm her but Felicity just grunted in protest.

"Oh for gods sake Oliver I'm not Digg!"

"What?"

"I'm not Digg or any of your men! I don't learn the same way they do, I'm not as strong as them! Evolution has made it so that I am physically weaker than them! I'm not saying I want you to go easy on me. I'm not saying I want you to coddle me and treat me like a little girl. What I'm saying is that everybody has limitations and my limitations are not the same as Diggles. You're expecting too much of me, you're setting the bar too high. There is a wide range of things I don't know, and I'm not going to learn well if we don't do things in the way that I'm capable. You want me to learn, I want to learn so teach me god damnit!"

"I'm trying to teach you but you're being uncooperative!" Oliver argued, stepping forward.

"You're the one who can't seem to give me any useful tactics! I don't learn like this! I learn by muscle memory and I can't build muscle memory with you just throwing me to the mat every chance you get!" Oliver narrowed his eyes at Felicity, contemplating something, weighing his options. Felicity barely saw the twitch in his arm and before she knew what she was doing, she was ducking out of the way of his right hook. She went under his arm and rolled over the mat, ending in a crouch. Oliver looked over at her, emotionless.

"Looks like you have learned something." Felicity scowled at his remark.

"That doesn't mean your methods are effective." Oliver tilted his head before he walked to the weapons cabinet and took out two swords.

"Let's see if you actually know anything." He flipped one of the swords around, holding it by the blade and extending the handle to Felicity. She stood smoothly and walked over to the weapon. She took the sword and immediately swung it at Oliver, which he dodged easily. They fought for a minute, the swords clashing together and Felicity dodging Oliver's moves before he disarmed her and kicked her onto her back. Felicity landed hard, the wind getting knocked right out of her. Felicity stood slowly.

 "Again." Oliver said with a cool tone. He leaned down and picked the sword up for Felicity. He extended it to her again. She reached out to grab the handle, anger and frustration rising in her chest. Only when she went to pull the sword from Oliver's grasp, he didn't let go.

Instead he yanked on the weapon once Felicity had got a hold of it, which sent Felicity stumbling forward, releasing the sword. Oliver gracefully tossed her weapon to the side, catching her arm and using her momentum to push her against the wall. Felicity slammed into the basement wall, back hitting the cool, concrete surface harshly, eyes closed in pain. She felt the cold steel of Oliver's blade against her throat and her eyes slid open to see Oliver looming over her. She tried to swift against the wall, to see if there was anything she could use against Oliver and get out from under his sword. He simply pressed the sharp metal harder against the skin of her neck.

"You need to anticipate the unexpected. Not every fight will go how you imagine. Not everyone will play fair." Oliver said, his other hand tightening its grip on her arm. Felicity looked at him for a moment, calculating what she should do next. With how close he was, practically chest to chest, limiting her space to move, Felicity didn't have very many options. But, as Oliver said, she didn't have to play fair. One of her arms was pinned to the wall but the other was free. Oliver was counting on the sharp object against her throat to subdue her and keep her from doing anything drastic. But all Felicity had to do was distract Oliver long enough to get away and her free arm let her do just that. She smiled sweetly and triumphantly at him, confusing the hell out of him.

"How about a wager?" Felicity said, relaxing against the wall. Oliver raised an eyebrow.

"A wager?"

"Yes. I get out of this hold and you cook me dinner." Oliver huffed out a laugh, at her assumption that she'd break free of the hold or at her reward, Felicity didn't know.

"And what do I get if I win?"

"What do you want Mr. Queen?" Oliver grinned smugly at her question then leaned in close. "I want a great deal of things Miss. Smoak. Для того, чтобы поцеловать тебя , чтобы заняться любовью с вами , чтобы защитить вас , позвонить тебе шахту. [To kiss you, to make love to you, to protect you, to call you mine.] But we can't all get what we want."

"In this case you can." Felicity said smartly. "Whatever you want, I'll do it or give it to you."

"Даже если то, что я хочу, чтобы похоронить мою голову между бедер и никогда не возродиться?[Even if what I want is to bury my head in between your thighs and never resurface?]" Felicity turned a light shade of pink at the thought of Oliver eating her out, sticking his tongue inside her and sucking on her clit. Oliver leaned forward, careful not to push the sword further against her neck, and whispered in her ear. "Do you like it when I speak Russian Felicity?" Felicity saw her out and she took it.

"I do. But only when you speak the language. No one else has quite the effect on me like you." Felicity breathed. "Now, what do you want?" Oliver pulled back.

"I want you to give me one of the favours Anatoly owes you. I used up a lot of mine to get that phone call with him the other day and I need to replenish my supply. I win, I get your favour. You win, I cook you dinner. Deal?" Felicity smiled.

"Deal." Oliver pushed the blade a little harder against Felicity's neck, trying to assert dominance. Felicity just kept on smiling, savouring the moment, knowing she would win. Felicity's free hand reached up and touched his hip, which was warm and sweaty from their fight. Oliver flinched, obviously expecting pain or injury but relaxed when he realized it was just her hand and not a weapon. Felicity slid her hand across his smooth skin, over a scar and across his abs. Oliver sucked in a breath at the gentle, feather light touch and clenched his teeth together when her fingernails nicked the V of his hipbones. His muscles rippled and jumped under her touch.

"Fe-li-ci-ty." Oliver ground out, eyes slipping closed as her fingertips dipped slightly under the waistband of his cargo pants. "What-what are you doing?" Felicity hummed lazily, not answering him as her hand pulled away from his waistband to unbuckle his belt. Oliver breathed out shakily, his eyes cracking open slightly to watch her nimble hand. Before Oliver could utter another question, Felicity whispered her response, her hot breath fanning over his face.

"I'm doing the unexpected." Felicity pushed her hand fully into his pants, cupping his embarrassingly hard length. Oliver jumped back with a growl, sword clattering to the floor, forgotten. Felicity followed Oliver, her now free hand grabbing the back of his neck to pull him down into a kiss and the other hand slipping back into his pants. Oliver moaned into her mouth as her hand rubbed his length through his boxers. His hands raised to her shoulder blades, pulling her firmly against him. Their mouths moved together for a moment before Felicity's hand pushed firmly on his clothed length, which had Oliver's hips jerking, his mouth falling from hers.

"Felicity-" Oliver breathed, pressing his forehead into hers. "We should stop. Mourning's not over-"

"I don't care." Felicity moved her hand from his neck and from his cargo pants (which forced a little noise from Oliver) and placed them on his chest. She pushed him backward, hooking one foot around his leg and successfully tripping him. Oliver fell back onto the training mats with a thud, Felicity on top of him. She immediately set her mouth to work on his neck, needly kissing and sucking, before Oliver had a chance to protest. She sucked his skin until it turned a nice shade of purple, decorating his neck with dots of colour. She dragged her teeth across his pulse point, causing Oliver to groan, his hands raising to her waist. Felicity grabbed his wrists before his hands could touch her and pinned them to the mat. She groaned against his skin, biting his shoulder and rolling her hips. Oliver moaned, low in his throat, throwing his head back against the padding under him. Felicity kissed further down Oliver's chest, releasing his hands so she could go lower. Oliver could tell where she was going and what she was going to do so he sat up abruptly, forcing her to sit up in his lap.

"Felicity," Oliver breathed out, forehead pressed against hers, eyes squeezed shut. "What are you doing? What am I doing? I'm your Captain. I uphold the rules. I can't let you break them." His hands moved soothingly up her back.

"We can't do this. Not yet." Felicity let out a shuddered breath and surged forward, greedily pressing her lips to his. She gripped the back of his neck almost painfully, teeth biting. Oliver fell into her kiss for a moment but as soon as her lips drifted over his jaw and down his neck, while her hands moved lower, Oliver grabbed her wrists and forced her back. He pulled her hands off him and held her away from him. Felicity was breathing unsteadily, eyes still closed.

"Please." She whispered. Felicity was trembling in Oliver's lap, hands shaking in his grasp. "Please." She said, her voice loud and stronger.

"I need to feel something. I can't keep going on like this. I can't keep having people tell me what to do or say or think. I need love and affection and for someone I trust to tell me everything is going to be okay, that I'm not going to die." Felicity sucked in a breath, steadying herself. "I need to feel something." Oliver felt absolutely crushed. The woman he cared so much for (even loved but he was still struggling to admit that to himself) was struggling and scared.

"Felicity, I am you Captain." Oliver said firmly. He released her hands and cradled her head in his hands. "But before I am your Captain, I am your friend. And I will protect and care for you. I will give you all the affection you need and more. Until Mourning is over I will sit on my bed with you and kiss you for hours and make you feel loved. I will hold you for as long as you need and I will keep you in my arms at night and protect you. Alright?" Felicity nodded and Oliver smiled.

"Can you do one more thing for me?" Felicity asked in a small voice.

"Of course. Anything." Felicity a gentle hold of Oliver's wrists and tugged his hands from her face. She slowly pushed him back on the mat and rested his hands against it.

"Pinned you. I win." Felicity smiled brightly as the realization of her words crossed his face.

"You tricked me?"

"No. I am scared and feeling alone but getting you distracted and pinned was a bonus I guess. You can cook me dinner now Mr. Queen." Oliver smiled, sitting up.

"Very well Miss. Smoak." He leaned in, nose nudging Felicity's, lips drifting towards hers.

"I see the training is going well." Diggle's amused voice said from the foot of the stairs. Felicity and Oliver jerked back from each other like guilty teenagers, Felicity shooting to her feet. She guiltily tucked some loose hair from her ponytail behind her ears.

"We were just-um-"

"We were taking a break Digg." Oliver said smoothly, getting to his feet.

"Really?" Digg asked, eyebrow raised.

"Because our training breaks don't look like that."

"I sure hope not." Felicity snorted to herself, crossing her arms over her chest. Her eyes widened when she realized she had said the words out loud and she turned red as Oliver and Digg chuckled. Oliver walked up and slipped an arm around Felicity's shoulders, pulling her to his side. He placed a reassuring kiss on the top of her head as she brought her arms up and around his waist in a gentle hug. Digg watched them for a moment before speaking.

"So is this how it's going to be from now on?" Felicity looked up.

"What? Us all hugs and kisses?"

"No. Me walking in on the two of you with you sitting on him and his pants undone." Oliver looked down at his unbuckled belt and hastily did them back up. "Because if so, you guys need to learn how to put a sock on the door or something. And I think we might also need ground rules." Felicity looked questioningly at Oliver before looking back at Digg.

"Ground rules?" Digg nodded at her question and stepped forward.

"First, always use some type of warning for the other people in the house. No one wants to walk in on you two." Felicity blushed, resting her head against Oliver's chest. "Secondly, no doing it in public spaces. That includes this training room. Other people use this space and even if you sanitize every inch of this room, it's still gross. And thirdly, no feeling each other up while the rest of us are around."

"Where did that rule come from?" Felicity asked innocently. Oliver scratched the back of his neck guiltily while Digg gave him a pointed look.

"Your new boyfriend here has a history of getting frisky with the women that come for dinner." Felicity pulled away from Oliver and looked up at him.

"Frisky, how?"

"Totally unsubtly." Diggle chimed in. "Sure, he would touch the ladies under the table but it's not like they could keep quiet and when he's only using one hand to eat his food, you can tell." Felicity laughed and putting a hand over her mouth to try and keep quiet.

"I'm sorry!" She apologized through gasps of breath. "But that's so bad! You had better get better at being discreet." Oliver raised an eyebrow and took a step near Felicity.

"And why is that?" He asked, his hands slipped up and around her waist. Felicity let herself be pulled closer to Oliver, her own hands sliding up his bare chest.

"Because you won't be able to keep your hands off me and we don't want to disturb or disgust the other members of the household." Oliver smiled and rubbed his hands up and down Felicity's back. "And what about you not keeping your hands off me?"

"Oh, I am very discreet." Oliver raised an eyebrow as his hands moved lower.

"Hey!" Digg yelled, startling the couple. "Breaking of rule three! No feeling each other up while others are around." Felicity rolled her eyes.

"We're just holding onto each other Digg."

"You might be holding him but Oliver needs to remove his hands." Felicity looked down at where Oliver's hands rested on her ass. She hadn't even noticed.

"Hey!" Felicity said angrily. "No breaking the rules mister." Felicity poked him in the chest. "Don't make me discipline you." Oliver smiled wickedly down at Felicity.

"Do tell Miss. Smoak, how would you discipline me?"

"Rule number four!" Digg said loudly, getting their attention again. "No dirty talk while other people are around. None of us want to here you two talking nasty." Felicity laughed and stepped back.

"I think distance is the only way to keep us from breaking the rules."

"I agree." Digg grumbled, frustrated with the horny teenagers he called his friends.

"Is there something you actually needed Digg? Or did you just come down here to ruin our fun?" Oliver asked.

"Actually yes. Dimitri Kynazev is standing upstairs in the foyer. He says he has something extremely important to talk to you about." Felicity turned away in disgust at the mere mention of Dimitri's name. Oliver saw her anger and he shook his head at Digg.

"The Kynazev boys are no longer welcome in our home. Please tell him to leave."

"I already tried that. He told me I didn't need to use force to get him to leave, I just need to give you a message and see if you would talk with him."

"What was the message?" Felicity asked, turning back to Digg.

"Something in Russian. Excuse my pronunciation but I think he said, мой лисица, or something like that." Even though Digg slaughtered the word, both Felicity and Oliver could make it out.

"Let him talk to Oliver." Felicity said before Oliver had a chance to question what Dimitri meant by the words. Digg was shocked.

"Seriously?" Felicity nodded. "What does it mean? And what does it mean to you?" Felicity smiled a fraction at Digg's question.

"Rule four Digg. We can't talk dirty around anyone." Digg grimaced and raised his hands in defeat. "Ew, whatever. I don't want to know what I said. I'll send him up to your office." He said to Oliver and went up the stairs, leaving Felicity and Oliver alone. As soon as the door shut behind Digg, Oliver whirled on Felicity.

"My Vixen? What does that mean?" Felicity pushed the toe of her shoe into the training mat, not looking Oliver in the eye.

"It's what Dimitri would call me whenever we were together. Like together-together. Like during sex."

"Oh." Felicity looked up to see Oliver's blank face and her face flushed. "Why would he want to tell me that?"

"I don't know. But can you go talk to him please and get him out of the house as fast as possible?"

"Of course." Oliver walked over and placed a chaste kiss on Felicity's forehead. He smiled down at her, which she barely returned before he crossed the training room to the stairs. "Oh, Felicity?" She looked up from where she was gathering their abandoned equipment.

"Yeah?"

"Remind me never to call you 'my vixen', okay?"

"Okay." Felicity said with a little smile, bigger than before. Oliver nodded before going quickly up the stairs. He managed to snag a shirt before entering his office to see Dimitri standing by one of his bookshelves. Digg was standing off to the side, watching him. "

You can go now Digg." Diggle nodded in acknowledgment and left. Dimitri turned to face Oliver.

"I guess Mr. Diggle gave you my message." Dimitri moved to sit but Oliver stopped him.

"Don't bother sitting, you won't be here long. I did get your message and Felicity explained the significance of it. My question is, why tell it?"

"I knew there was a good chance you would be around Felicity when Digg gave you the message or that if she wasn't, your general curiosity would make you want to talk to me. How is Felicity, by the way?"

"She is currently none of your concern." Oliver said coldly. "Now what did you want to tell me?" Dimitri clasped his hands behind his back and began to move about the office as he talked.

"As you knew and my message confirmed, Felicity and I have had a relationship in the past. An intimate one." Oliver shifted his weight between his feet, visibly angry with Dimitri's reminder of Felicity's previous time with the Kynazev boys. Dimitri noticed Oliver's demeanour and continued. "I'm not saying it to throw it in your face Mr. Queen. It's a fact that is relevant to our conversation, to show you that I have experience and knowledge in this subject."

"And what subject would that be?"

"Having sex with Felicity." Dimitri said bluntly. Anger flashed across Oliver's face and he took a step forward but stopped when Dimitri raised his hands in passive defense.

"I told you Mr. Queen, I'm not saying these things to be rude or mean. I have a point to this topic."

"Then I suggest that you get to it. _Quickly._ "

"I'm not an idiot. I see how much you and Felicity care about each other and I know that it is inevitable that the two of you will end up having sex. So I wanted to give you a tip that might end up saving Felicity's life." Oliver raised an eyebrow, curious. "Felicity holds her breath when she orgasms." Oliver's eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"Well, I guess 'holding' her breath isn't the right word, more like her breath catches in her chest and she's so out of it that she kind of forgets to breathe. It's only happened a couple times while I was with her but there was one time where I wasn't paying attention and she passed out." Dimitri walked up to Oliver. "I am simply worried about her and I wanted to make sure you were fully informed. Not every threat comes from outside forces." Oliver was shocked by Dimitri's sincerity. He could tell the man was just looking out for Felicity and not trying to toy with him or to use any reason to get in the house. Oliver held out a hand to Dimitri, who took it in surprise.

"Thank you for letting me know. I want her safe too."

"You're welcome. I trust that you'll take care of Felicity and although I pains me to admit it, I don't think she could be in better hands." Oliver nodded and released Dimitri's hand. Both men walked out of the office and to the front door.

"How is Felicity, Oliver? I don't mean how she is about the situation between her and me and my brothers but how is she here? Is she happy?" Oliver smiled a little and nodded.

"She's very happy. It took her awhile to adjust to the house and the people but she likes it here." Dimitri smiled a little.

"Good. That's all I've ever wanted for her, to be happy." With another handshake, Dimitri left without any problem and Oliver turned to meet Digg.

"Everything okay?" He asked. Oliver nodded briskly.

"He just had something to tell me." Oliver was happy Digg didn't ask any further questions.

"Felicity went upstairs and she didn't look too happy." Digg told Oliver, a grave look on his face. "After you left the training room, Raisa came down to collect Felicity."

"Collect her for what?"

"Your mother wanted to talk to her." Without another word Oliver moved quickly to the stairs and went up them two at a time to find Felicity.

 

***

 

Felicity sat on Oliver's bed, clutching one of his pillows to her chest. How in the hell could one woman manage to make Felicity feel so worthless just by using her words?

Moira Queen, that's who.

Not two seconds after Oliver left her in the basement, Raisa came down to get her, telling her that Mrs. Queen wanted a word. So Felicity went with Raisa and then got the biggest verbal smackdown of her life.

 

Felicity knocked on Moira Queens office door before hearing Mrs. Queen tell her to come in. Felicity closed the door quietly and stood awkwardly in the office. Moira was at her desk, busily doing some paper work, not bothering to look up at Felicity. After a moment Felicity took it upon herself to move closer to the desk but when she made a motion to sit, Mrs. Queen stopped her.

"There's no need to sit Miss. Smoak, this won't take long." She said, not looking up. Felicity stood quietly in front of the office desk until Mrs. Queen put her pen down and looked up, lacing her fingers together over the desks surface.

"Miss. Smoak, it has come to my attention that you have become emotionally attached to my son." Felicity opened her mouth to speak but Moira continued. "I know that my son is very attractive, charming, successful and could easily woo any woman he wanted, which is what I'm assuming he's done with you, but I need to know, are you aware of how far this relationship will go?" Felicity shifted on her feet and let out a very brief laugh.

"No one can say for certain how long a relationship will last, only how long they hope-"

"How strange," Moira interrupted. "That you say that no one can know how long a relationship will last when I know exactly when your infatuation with my son will end."

"Infatuation?" Felicity asked, taken back and confused. "End?"

"My son is destined to do great things Miss. Smoak and as far as I'm concerned those things do not include you. Did you honestly think this little fantasy world you've wrapped yourself up in would last? Did you think that the Bratva would allow someone of a lower rank than Captain, marry my son? Did you honestly think that a wife hadn't already been picked out for Oliver before he even knew you existed?" Each of Mrs. Queens words were sharp and to the point, delivering blow after blow to Felicity's heart and confidence.

"I believed, or at least I was told, that you were an exceptionally intelligent girl Miss. Smoak but as it seems you aren't intelligent to begin with as it's clear you haven't realized that my son is simply using you for sex. Oliver doesn't do committed relationships, his work is too important to him. I'm frankly disappointed to find out that you aren't as extraordinary as everyone says you are. You are a dimwitted young girl who can't tell fact from fiction. But I can. The fact is that my son's future _does not include you_." Moira finished in a clipped tone, eyes like cold stones that shook Felicity at her core. Moira went simply back to her paper work as if she hadn't just shredded Felicity's emotions. Felicity had absolutely no idea how to react, she was simply frozen on the spot. After a second or two Moira looked up quizzically and waved her hand in a 'shoo' motion.

"That is all Miss. Smoak, you may go." Completely out of sorts, Felicity turned and fled, letting the door shut behind her as she ran for the stairs, hoping to get upstairs before she started to cry. She made it to Oliver's room, slamming the door behind her and dropping down onto the bed, hand over her mouth to stiffen her sobs. She grabbed one of Oliver's pillows to hold onto for comfort, Moira's words ringing in her head, making her chest feel deflated. She buried her face in the pillow as more tears flooded out, despite her effort to keep it together.

Felicity was just managing to pull herself together when Oliver came in, looking worried. Felicity broke down the second their eyes met and began to cry, clutching his pillow tighter. Oliver was next to her in a heart beat, pulling her against him and rubbing his hands over her back. He kissed her hairline and rested his cheek against the top of her head. When Felicity managed to get a handle on her tears she pulled back, moving to wipe her tears away but Oliver beat her to it. "Hey," Oliver whispered soothingly. He held her face in his hands and leaned down so they were eye level.

"What did she say to you? What did my mother do?"

"She said you didn't actually care about me, that all this is some dumb crush I have on you and all you want from me is sex." Oliver closed his eyes and sucked in a breath of anger. He breathed out loudly before looking at Felicity.

"You know that's not true right? I do care about you Felicity. And if I'm being perfectly honest, if I did only want you for sex, I would never put in this much effort." Felicity let out a small laugh and wiped her wet cheeks, moving his hands from her face.

"I know that she was wrong about that, I never believed her but she said something else. She said that the Bratva would never allow us to be together and basically neither would she. Also that the Bratva has already picked you out a wife? I knew that us being together was going to make some people upset and there would be obstacles but a wife? If they've already thought that far into your future then they must really want it to happen and we both know they're powerful enough to make it happen." Oliver began to laugh, which annoyed Felicity as she was genuinely upset and she felt like Oliver was making fun of her.

"Felicity," He laughed out before he leaned in for a quick kiss. "No one could ever force me to marry someone I didn't want to marry or someone I didn't love. They could throw a hundred potential wives at me and I'd still pick you." The corners of Felicity's mouth lifted up as she stared back at Oliver.

"I never thought that I would fall for you Felicity, and I never could have guessed that I would. I found love where I didn't expect it to be." Oliver tilted Felicity's chin up so she would look directly at him. "Right in front of me." Felicity launched herself at Oliver, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him firmly. Oliver began to laugh as Felicity peppered his face with kisses, never stopping for a second. She was grinning wildly as Oliver managed to untangle her from him.

"You love me?" Felicity asked, her voice hopeful. Oliver looked softly at her and smiled.

"Yes I do. I couldn't admit it to myself but it seems like all I had to do was say it to you and I fully accept that I've fallen for you Felicity Smoak." Felicity's face split into a glowing smile that lit up her face as she grabbed Oliver's face and kissed the tip of his nose. Oliver laughed again, a sound that Felicity was coming accustomed to and wouldn't tired of any time soon, and he returned the kiss. Felicity looked at Oliver for a moment, as if she was gathering her thoughts before she spoke.

"Oliver I-"

"Felicity don't say anything you don't want to." Oliver interrupted before she went too far.

"What?"

"I don't want you to feel like you need to say that you love me back just because I said it. I didn't say 'I love you' to hear you say it back, I said it so you would know." Felicity let Oliver's words sink in and she closed her mouth, nodding.

"Alright."

"So what would you like to do now?" Oliver said after a moment.

"I think I'll sleep for a bit before you cook me that dinner you owe me."

"You mean the dinner you cheated me into making for you?" Oliver teased.

"I won fair and square!"

"Your tactics were hardly fair! You used my love for you against me." Felicity scoffed at the accusation.

"I used your libido against you." Felicity corrected proudly. Oliver grinned at her proudness and leaned down to kiss Felicity's neck. Her laugh quickly turned to a moan as Oliver sucked on her skin. She tipped her head back and her hand drifted to the back of Oliver's neck. They both fell back on the bed with Felicity cradling Oliver's hips between her legs. Oliver's hips rocked forward involuntarily and Felicity reciprocated. Oliver's hands snaked under Felicity's shirt, sliding up her warm skin and as his fingertips brushed the edge of her bra, Felicity grabbed his wrists.

"Whoa there Tiger, I'm still in Mourning, remember?" Oliver pulled back, a little pouty but Felicity wasn't buying it. "Nope, put the kicked puppy face away it won't work on me. I'd like to sleep please, your mom really drained me emotionally." Oliver sobered at the mention of his mothers actions and he nodded.

"You go to sleep then and I'm going to have a convention with her about her attitude towards you." Felicity got under the covers and snuggled into bed. Oliver kissed her forehead.

"This will be a civilized conversation right? No yelling or throwing things?"

"Of course not. It'll be a nice mother-son chat where I'll tell her to leave you alone and to keep her nose out of our business and my lovelife." Felicity smiled sleepily as Oliver left the room and turned off the light. She burrowed into the pillows and let the smell of Oliver guide her to sleep.

 

***

 

**Next Chapter!**

**-Mourning is OVER!**

**-You know what that means!**

**-(bow chicka wow wow)**


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